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A scuffling sound echoes throughout the Solunian Outpost, followed by chimes and jingles alike, similar to that of clashing jewellery. The noise of shuffling blankets and fabric comes soon after.
In the bedroom—the one the knight and her Princess started in on the first floor, when the foundations of the outpost were complete—shot awake the Moon Knight Apo, alarmed by the noise.
What was more alarming, when she turned to her right, was the complete lack of the Princess.
It’s not like it’s the first time she hadn't been asleep in the middle of the night. In fact, it happens more often than not, but Apo is typically awake and aware enough to notice when she leaves.
Clearly, Apo missed it happening tonight.
The fact that they never heard nor saw Cherri leave, combined with the sudden clashing of sounds, was concerning enough for Apo to swiftly grab her spear, put on her armour, and investigate.
It’s only when they’ve finished surveying the first floor that they noticed something odd.
“...Uh. Where is my star?” She whispered to herself, referring to the ornament she wore in her hair.
Returning to the bedroom, Apo comes to the conclusion that it is missing entirely.
While not the point of her inspection, it wouldn't hurt to search for it alongside her Princess once she checks the other floors. It feels odd not wearing it after wearing it so long, and she doubted it’d outright disappear overnight; not even a few hours ago had she placed it down on the windowsill.
Perhaps Cherri moved it into the chests below? She had fallen asleep when she wasn't home.
That was partially the reason for her sleeping in their first bedroom, with the rest of the reason behind it simply being that she was too tired. A ladder didn’t sound very appealing to climb at that moment.
Checking the basement came up empty, annoyingly. Considering what woke them up, Apo assumed the chests would’ve been rifled through.
The lack of information included their star ornament, which surprised the Moon Knight. It seemed like the most likely place for it to be. If it’s not there, then that would mean it must’ve been stolen.
Outdoors came up empty as well.
Apo obviously didn’t expect their ornament to be there. But there was no sign of Cherri recently going through, and a complete lack of something that must’ve made sound – what could’ve possibly chimed and shuffled in the way that she’d heard earlier?
Finally, they made their way through upstairs to their newer bedroom.
She’s surprised by what greets her: a pile of blankets on the floor (below the bed she shared with her princess), surrounded by jewellery, crystals, and gold alike.
“What?” Apo couldn’t help herself from verbalizing her confusion. She doubts this was 4C’s doing, implying this was then her Princess.
At the noise, the pile starts to shuffle around.
Cautiously, they step closer and lightly poke the blankets. A few moments pass, and out pops the familiar face they’ve come to love.
“Not… the weirdest thing I’ve seen you do,” the Moon Knight starts, which is shockingly true. “What are you doing?”
Cherri’s face flushes in what Apo assumes is embarrassment. “Uh. Hey, dude…”
She stares at them, at which Apo stares back in hopes that she actually answers. After a few seconds, their gaze is drawn away by a familiar object.
“That’s where it went!?” She exclaimed, leaning down to grab her star back. To her surprise, Cherri takes it before she can.
Confusingly, the Princess groans at her own action. Apo’s eyebrows furrow in concern.
Crouching down to their level, Apo took in the situation again in attempts to figure them out. “You don’t even like jewelry, or anything in this material,” she points out, though her ornament would surely be an exception if Cherri’s crown is wearable to them. “Why do you have this? All of it, too, actually.”
“I don’t like how it feels, and that wouldn’t be on my skin,” Cherri argues. Tugging off the blankets, she sits up to meet Apo face-to-face. “The reason is embarrassing,” she draws out, dragging her free hand through her hair.
Looking at the rest of her pile, she nervously tugs at her hair as she elaborates, “Something with dragon genes, or whatever. It’s dumb.”
“Oh,” Apo responds simply. That actually made a lot of sense.
Thinking about it, all the racket that woke her up must’ve been Cherri gathering everything for this pile, then. Or, more accurately, it must be her hoard of treasures. At least that’s what Apo will assume, considering what little knowledge she has on this.
Raising an eyebrow, she leans closer to Cherri’s face. “So my ornament is a treasure to you?” She asks, taking the opportunity to tease her.
“Shut up, dude,” Cherri responds weakly, clearly flustered as she covers Apo’s eyes with her hand.
Apo laughs, pulling her head away from their hand whilst taking the chance to interlock her own with theirs. Cherri squeezes her hand in response.
“How’d you hide this the past two months?” Apo asks, after a few seconds pass in silence. The Princess hums as she considers the question.
Twirling the star in her hand, she answers cautiously, “I think it was partially how, like… well, we’re– You know, always side-by-side.”
The Moon Knight nods, acting like she’s following her logic.
“You’re my treasure,” she explains, looking away. “Something like that. Before I realized that, I think my crown and the Soluna emblem on my dress kept the instincts at bay. My family’s a treasure, too.”
With this knowledge, Apo wondered how she handled their technical-time apart during the masquerade. This thought flusters them, reminding them of what happened after.
What Cherri said hits them after this, flustering them further. When they’d teased her about the treasures a moment ago, they didn't expect it to make them feel all jittery and fluttery to hear her admit it as well.
“Right. And ‘the instincts’ happened tonight, because…?” She questioned, pushing that aside for now.
Cherri looks back to them. “I wasn’t with you most of today, or yesterday,” she said, still twirling the star around. “Er… this thing we have, I think it amplified how strongly it affects me. Father would explain it better.”
Scary idea to ask, because she knows that wherever King Ren is, Alistar is sure to follow.
Maybe she’ll still entertain that idea once they make their return to Soluna, despite that factor. It’d be nice to learn more about Cherri and her father’s heritage this way. Perhaps Alistar could even have something useful to say.
“Aw. You could’ve told me this, Princess,” Apo said, squeezing her hand again. It’s not like she was unaware of the dragon genes in the first place.
She could see how this may have been a lot to explain before, though, especially if it’s never been like this until now. Apo would like to think she’d still try to help as much as she could regardless.
In lue of a response, Cherri tugs on her arm and pulls her into the blanket, falling back with her. Apo laughs in surprise, but settles into it quickly.
Pulling her closer, the Moon Knight eases into the impromptu cuddles. “Instincts again, or just a cuddly Princess?” she teased.
“Shush,” Cherri responds aloud this time. Her arms wrap around them, and Apo sighs happily at her warmth.
It’s quiet for a moment again. Apo doesn't interrupt it this time, soaking in the comfort from their Princess.
This time, Cherri is the one who speaks up. “Your eyes glitter,” she says. Apo hums in response. “Shimmering like redstone. Or magma.”
“My eyes aren't anything like magma?” They laugh in confusion, but they're endeared nonetheless.
The Princess rolls her eye. “Whatever!” She shoves their arm. “It’s pretty. I love it, that’s what I was saying there. You’re pretty.”
Apo laughs again, and her face warms with a blush. It’s something she can't really respond to, much too flustered to directly acknowledge it despite how she teased Cherri before.
With a hum, the Princesses’ hold on her tightens, trying to pull her in closer. It doesn't do much; Apo may as well already be as close to her as physically possible.
She imagines what it’d be like if Cherri had all the aspects of a dragon hybrid, in this exact moment. Her wing would drape over her comfortably, and her tail would curl tightly around her, keeping her close.
Apo also likes how she holds her now, however.
Brushing her hair aside and kissing her forehead, they then lean back for a moment. “I love you,” they whisper. “Good night, Cherri.”
“‘Love you,” Cherri whispers back, and leans her head back towards them, suddenly much more drowsy than she’d sounded moments prior.
She falls asleep before she can say goodnight. Apo laughs, and allows herself to fall back asleep too.