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“What was it like up there?”
Vi did the starborn equivalent of opening its eyes and turned its head to look at Alvarez.
“Hm?”
“The stars” Al clarified. “What are they like?”
Vi turned its head again, now staring upwards at the expansive sky above them. The two of them would often stay up late to stargaze like this. It gave Vi a chance to reminisce about its life up there, and to think about its life now.
“You always ask me that” it replied, at a matching, quiet volume. Neither wanted to disturb the calm atmosphere, opting to practically whisper to each other instead.
“You never answer.” Vi looked back at Alvarez. She looked to be glowing in the lighting, the moon and lamplight making her features soften out in a relaxed expression. The grass that cushioned her head provided a perfect background to what would have been an amazing picture had the two taken any electronics with them.
No matter how many times Al would ask it, Vi would never quite be sure how to respond. How does one describe the deliriously beautiful feeling of simply existing in a star? It’s not the sort of liberating sensation one can describe, and not one that any species other than starborn would enjoy either. Every time, it looks for words that aren’t there, a way to explain that it cannot be explained.
It sighs quietly, lost in thought, watching Alvarez. And suddenly, the explanation is right there, on the tip of its tongue.
It reaches over, and yanks Alvarez onto its skeletal form.
“wh- hey!” Al yelps as she comes in contact with the hard bone structure that makes up Vi’s body. She turns to scowl at it, giving it a look that very clearly read “what the hell, babe?”
Vi giggled minutely. Even when she was pissed off, Al was adorable, eyes slightly squinted and brow furrowed in a way that made her look like an angry kitten. It pulled Al closer and turned on its side to the best of its ability.
With the two now aptly facing each other, Vi stretched its arms out and brought Al into a hug.
It wasn’t the most comfortable thing ever, considering there was literally no flesh to cushion Alvarez’s body, and yet she felt herself relax. The sounds of the crickets and wind seems to grow silent as the two embraced.
Vi let itself calm with Al in its arms, and focused.
They simply laid there together for a minute, basking in each other's company, before Al realized that the previous chill of the night had almost entirely dissipated. She opened her eyes and let out a soft gasp.
From Vi’s chest was a glowing, pulsating, heating up light. It moved seemingly at random, a formless mass that almost reminded Al of Sev, if they were made of light.
With the stardust securely and safely stored in its chest, Vi opened its eyes and came face to face with a fascinated Alvarez. It smiled softly, before resuming their prior conversation.
“This is how I feel inside the stars. Its the sort of warmth you only find in a home, you know? A constant, safe feeling that heats you from the inside out.”
“So… how I feel with you then?”
Vi’s nonexistent heart skipped a beat, stardust pulsating for a moment inside its chest cavity. When it had no response Al looked up to find it staring at her, eyes glowing brighter than she had ever seen them. She huffed with a stupid smile on her face, before looking away and curling closer to Vi’s calming warmth.
Vi continued staring at Al for a moment, before finally snapping out of its flustered daze and pulling her even closer.
And as it layed there with her, it came to a conclusion.
It feels like the stars to be with her too.