-Nova’s POV-

The shouts of a large, well-armed squadron echo through the forests of Steel Valley.

*Who the hell are these guys!?!*

I duck and weave through the growth as I run with everything I have. Dodging past a tree, I catch a glimpse of Steel Valley city. The skyscrapers are gleaming in the low evening light and the spotlights arranged along the hexagonal wall encompassing the city are illuminating a massive area, keeping watch for any and all threats. Sadly I don’t get a chance to admire the sight as dart whizzing past my head forces me to look away. Thinking fast, I rip a large chunk of bark off of a rotting log and turn to defend myself, but before I can raise any real defense, I hear a loud puff of CO2. A dart wizzes in between the trees and strikes me square in the forehead, knocking my point of view out of my body. I watch from a third person view as my physical body just stands there, completely motionless, before turning into an extremely low-quality jpeg of an explosion, with a similarly crappy sound effect playing over it.

The shock of seeing myself explode causes me to shoot awake, almost choking on a panicked breath.

Dazed and a bit traumatized from the whole experience, I try to steady my breathing and pull my mind back together, spending the next few minutes drinking water and staring at a wall.

Now feeling a bit more coherent, two things catch my attention. The fact that I really need to use the bathroom, and that everything seems to be a little purple. Prioritizing my bladder over weird visual errors, I get up and quietly leave for the bathroom.

-Amber’s POV-

A light thud comes from somewhere inside the flat, immediately waking me.

*Huh? Who?*

As I force myself to sit up, I hear a few more clatters and the sound of a door opening. Immediately on alert, I try to shake off my exhaustion. Glancing at Nova’s bed reveals an empty mess of sheets. I’m about to flip on my nightlight when I hear the bathroom door open.

“Hello-?” My breath catches in my throat when a shadow figure with glowing gray eyes walks out of the bathroom. We stare at each other for a short time before the figure rubs one of its eyes, which are slowly shifting to a darker shade.

*Wait a second…*

Swallowing my heart, I ask “N-Nova, is that you?”

“Mhmm…”

My eyes finally adjust to the dark. I can see Nova’s sleepy expression through the almost completely dark light of her eyes.

“Hey, are you ok?” her expression turns to one of concern.

“I- uh, yeah, I was gonna ask you that…”

“H-huh, why?”

“Well, (how do I put this), were your eyes always this… glowey?

“Glow…ey?”

Nova holds up a hand in front of her eyes. After a short moment of silence I am blinded as Nova’s eyes shine with a brilliant combo of white and yellow.

“Oww-Owww!! My eyes!!”

“AHH! I’m sorry!”

The light cuts out as Nova slams her eyes shut, leaving my own blurry and stinging.

“Better?” She softly asks.

“Yeah” I try rub the spots out of my eyes.

Though the fading splotches, I see Nova let out a huge yawn.

The sight causes me to chuckle “Wanna go back to sleep~?” I put on my best beckoning voice.

I begin to turn back to my bed when I feel a tug on the back of my pajamas.

“W-wait! Can you stay here for a moment…” Nova whispers through the night.

The motion of turning around brings me closer to Nova. The dim light of the moon barely illuminates the blush on her face. I can feel my heart skip at the sight.

She stutters a bit “I-I mean, with my eyes closed, I need help finding my way to bed!”

Resisting the urge to hug her, I gently take Nova’s hand and slowly guide her back to her bed.

“I-I think I can get into bed myself” Nova is jittering slightly and trying to hide her face.

Letting go of her, I watch her feel around for anything to grab for guidance. Once she manages to get an idea of where she is, she lays down and lets a sigh of relief. Once she has pulled up her blankets, I crouch down in front of her, half laying in the bed.

Hesitating a bit, I ask again “And you're sure you’re okay?”

Nova pulls up her blanket further “I think so? I mean, first the dynamochromia, then this… glowing. It’s a little overwhelming. Though, you know me! I’m mostly just excited!”

I poke Nova's forhead teasingly “Yeah, that seems about right for you.”

Nova faces me directly and carefully opens her eyes. Instead of the blinding light I expect, a soft pink glow lights up the area around us, it’s shade vaguely reminding me of rose quartz.

Shaking off the trance the glow puts me in, I get up and walk over to my bed.

“Goodnight Amber~” Nova gently (and sleepily) whispers from behind me.

“Goodnight Nova.” I settle into my bed and get tucked in, only to see that she’s already fallen asleep while digging her face into a large, fluffy creeper plush.

I "breath" an internal sigh.

*She is soooo cute~*