The days that followed the accident were the heaviest Lily had felt in a very long time. Each had passed just the same as it had before, like a dull time loop that would see no end.

When she, Luna, Cobalt, and Coco had returned from the failed mission that night, it became apparent to everyone who greeted them that something was wrong. That someone was missing. Team SCY had been the first to directly ask what had happened, and neither Lily, Luna nor Cobalt had been able to answer. After Coco had softly broken the news to the growing crowd, Cobalt's response had been to walk over to Storm and bury his head in his shoulder, while Luna had wandered silently past the crowd without even acknowledging anyone. Lily had just stood there, feeling utterly lost and empty.

Breaking the news to Neon had been the hardest. Lily and Cobalt, along with Ilia, had stood at Coco's side as the vice headmaster told Astra's mother that she might never see her daughter again. It had been Lily's first time meeting Neon in person, but she'd known of the woman's energy and enthusiasm, much like her daughter, never without a smile on her face. After hearing the news though, every speck of energy and joy seemed to have vanished from her in an instant. She'd crumbled to the ground in a shaking mess, not even responding when Ilia dropped to her side in an effort to console her. Eventually, Lily could no longer watch the devastating scene, and she and Cobalt had returned to their dorm.

And then there was Luna. Before returning to Beacon, Cobalt and Lily had found her curled up on the ground in an alleyway beside the hospital building, and she hadn't protested as they'd picked her up and helped her walk to the airship. She hadn't done anything.

In the days that followed, team LLAC's leader had been inconsolable. She wouldn't sleep, refused to talk to anyone, and barely ate. Most days were spent curled up on her bed, staring and nothing, and saying nothing. At night, Lily would hear her sobbing, and could do nothing but listen with a heavy heart. Blake and Yang had called Luna at several points, but each call had been ignored, until they'd called Lily and Cobalt, who had explained to them that Luna wasn't in the state to talk to anyone, not even them. Lily could only imagine how it felt for them to know they couldn't help their daughter. It felt bad enough that she couldn't help.

Glynda had been generous. She'd given the team the week off from studies, but Lily couldn't help but feel that she would have preferred the distraction. It seemed better than spending every day in the dorm with nothing to do, especially when Luna barely seemed there most times. Cobalt, at least, had Coco and Storm to go to, but Lily was left alone aside from the occasional check-up call from her mother. Without Astra around, everything felt dull and lifeless.

Now, sitting on her bed and watching leaves fall outside, Lily felt empty and helpless. While Cobalt was out, probably with either Coco or Storm, Lily was left alone with Luna, and the room had been silent for the past hour. Lily was growing desperate for something to change. She didn't even care if Luna yelled at her again, if she could just do something. Sitting here, just watching her friend be lost in her own grief, Lily refused to let it continue. She stood up and marched to the kitchen.

Since unlocking her Semblance, Lily had been collecting seeds, and it was from these seeds that numerous fruits, vegetables, and herbs grew, practically covering the small room in edible foliage. There'd been little need for buying ingredients when Lily could grow so much of it herself.

Turning the kettle on to boil, she snipped a chamomile flower off from a collection in one pot and peeled cinnamon bark off from where it grew in another. While the chamomile dried in the oven, she crushed the cinnamon in a bowl, before throwing both ingredients together in a tea infuser. When the water finished boiling, she mixed it into a mug with honey and vanilla essence, before dunking the infuser into it to soak. This was Luna's favourite tea blend, and Lily would often make it for her on nights she had trouble sleeping. Maybe there was a chance it could work its magic in this situation, too. And if it ended up finally encouraging her to sleep, even better. Placing the mug on a serving tray along with a couple of butter cookies, she carried it over to Luna.

"I'm not going to try to make you do anything," she told Luna as she set the tray down on the bed and planted herself on the covers at the foot end, "But I'm going to sit here, and I'm going to talk. If that's okay with you."

Luna's eyes briefly flickered in her direction, before she looked away again. It wasn't a 'no', at least.

She took a deep breath, searching for the words to say. "I'm not…going to pretend that I know exactly what you're going through," she started, "I think we're all grieving differently, but…I know you've probably never had to deal with anything this hard before, not like me and Cobalt have."

Luna looked up sharply, and Lily guessed what she was thinking right away.

"I'm not saying that you should consider yourself lucky," She amended quickly, "Nobody in a situation like this should ever feel grateful. I'm just saying that I know how much harder it must be for you to have to deal with something like this for the first time."

Luna seemed to relax, and Lily continued, "I don't really know what I can tell you…I'm not going to lie and say that I'm sure everything will be fine, or that you'll ever stop feeling like this." As she spoke, Lily felt her chest tighten. Suddenly, she didn't know how she was supposed to be of any comfort to Luna when she could barely comfort herself. "I just know that…Astra's one of my best friends Luna, and I hate the idea of losing her, but…" Suddenly, there were tears in her eyes, and her next words came out choked, "Luna, you're my friend too. And I don't want to lose you as well. I want you both to be okay."

Luna sniffed, and Lily turned to look at her. The other girl's face was crumpled, tears rolling down her face as her lips trembled. "I…I don't…"

Lily did something she never would have done at the start of the year. She reached forward and pulled Luna into a fierce hug, holding her tightly and letting her cry on her shoulder.

"I don't know what to do, Lily," Luna sobbed, her voice hoarse from not being used in days, "I don't know what to do without her, I don't know if I'll ever see her again, I…I don't know anything."

"I don't know either," Lily replied despairingly, feeling tears run down her own face, "I'm sorry, I- I wish I could do something," Her words caught in her throat and came out as a weak croak, "I feel so helpless like this."

Luna squeezed her tighter. "You don't need to apologize for anything," she replied, her voice still strained. She pulled back from the hug, leaving a wet stain on Lily's shoulder. "I should be the one apologizing, I just…" She pulled her knees to her chest, her eyes still thick with tears. "This is all my fault. She wouldn't have gone back if I hadn't mentioned the bandana. I don't know what she was thinking," Her voice quivered as she spoke, "Why risk her life for a scrap of fabric?"

Lily wiped her eyes with her sleeve, though the leather did nothing but smear the tears across her face. "You know her better than I do," she replied, her voice still shaking, "You know how she feels about herself, deep down. She'd put any of us above herself."

Luna curled up tighter. "I should have done more to convince her of how much she meant to me."

Lily placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Maybe when" She swallowed, "If she makes it…maybe that's something we can do. We'll make sure she knows how important she is to all of us."

"R-right." Luna gave a small nod.

Silence filled the air for a moment and Lily took a moment to gather herself, thinking hard about her next words.

"…Luna?"

Luna moved her head slightly to look up at her.

"You know she would have done the same for anyone else, right?" Lily kept her tone gentle. "It wasn't your fault. And it wasn't hers. Sometimes, things that happen are beyond our control."

Luna was quiet for a moment before she replied, "I know," her voice was barely more than a whisper. "I wish I had control over this."

Lily gave her a gentle tug so that she could lie on her shoulder. "So do I," she replied softly, "But for now, we don't. Not over this. All we can control is what we do from now. And I think that…I think that we should try to do what she'd want us to do."

Luna sniffed. "Which is what?"

"Well," Lily prompted, "You're her girlfriend. What do you think she'd say to us right now?"

Luna blinked slowly. "She'd…hate that we're upset. She'd do everything she could to make us feel better." She gave a small snort, and the slightest hint of a smile crossed her face. "I think she'd tell us to quit being so boring and to get off our asses and do something."

Lily huffed. "That sounds about right." Thinking for a moment, she dug into her pocket with her free hand and pulled out a seed she'd been keeping in there for a few days, waiting for the right time. A stem sprouted from it, growing into a small flower. It was pale pink and star-shaped, with five pointed petals growing out from the centre.

"This is a starflower," she told Luna. "They've always reminded me of Astra. Do you want to plant it with me later?"

Luna looked from the flower to Lily and gave a small nod. "I'd like that." She lifted her head off Lily's shoulder and sat up, wiping her eyes and glancing at the tea tray beside her. "Is…that for me?"

Lily nodded. "I thought it might help."

Luna picked up the mug with both hands. "Thank you…for all of this."

"I'm not sure I helped all that much," Lily snorted softly. "I made us both cry."

Luna took a sip of tea and breathed in deeply through her nose. "I think we needed it. You did help."

Maybe she was right, Lily realized. The dull feeling she'd felt for days had finally eased, ever so slightly. Feeling something other than guilt and helplessness was something, at least. "Maybe we should keep talking about her," She suggested, "She does like being the centre of attention, after all."

A tiny chuckle escape Luna's throat, though her eyes welled with tears again. "That sounds good."

As the two swapped stories, the emptiness eased even more. They both still cried, but sometimes they would laugh. As much as it hurt to imagine a world without Astra, there was comfort in remembering her. This was the person who'd taught Lily to lighten up a little, who'd helped her to grow a little more comfortable in having people close to her. She wasn't about to let all of that effort go to waste.

Lily didn't know how long she and Luna talked for, only that it was dark outside by the time Cobalt opened the door and interrupted a story about how Astra had once eaten four burgers in one sitting.

"Hey," Cobalt said softly as his gaze swept over them. The mix of emotions on their faces must have been a confusing sight. "Um…are you guys doing okay?"

Luna glanced at Lily, then back at Cobalt, stretching out one of her arms. "Can you come here?"

Cobalt smiled softly, before he obliged, walking over to Luna and Lily and letting them pull him into a group hug. Together, they cried for Astra, and somehow, it almost felt good.