No matter how long he lived, the stars would always be the most perfect and most beautiful things that Sollux had ever and probably would ever see. Not that he'd tell anyone, least of all his moirail Karkat. No doubt they would tease him and he would never be allowed to live it down. So he would keep his secret fondness for the stars locked away from the world; at least for now, that is. Even so, he couldn't help but gaze out the window of the truck that Eridan was driving both he and Karkat in. He was taking them to a night club, the name of which he could not recollect. Sollux was sure that if he listened to one bit of the horrible noise that was pouring from the sea-dweller's mouth, he'd overhear the name of the club. All he remembered was that it was one of the supposedly unsegregated clubs in Chicago.

Ever since the trolls had been integrated into Earth, there were places they weren't welcome. Most of the world had been pretty accepting of them, but there were certain people who would probably get off on burning their hives to the ground and laughing as they rolled around in the ashes. That, however, was not the purpose of this night. From what Sollux had been able to understand when Eridan had arrived was that they were meeting up with Strider, Terezi, and Gamzee because they wanted to introduce a couple of new trolls that had just moved in from Manhattan.

In all honesty? Sollux was not in the mood. He already had to deal with Karkat making him spend time outside of the hive; now

he had to deal with everyone else? The only upside was that Feferi was supposed to show up later that night as well, otherwise he probably would have faked having to study for a 3-D Animation test. Currently, he was just trying to make it through a car ride with his moirail and his auspisitice in the same car. He was drifting off, thinking about the codes he had to write tomorrow, when Karkat waved a hand in front of his glasses, nearly colliding with them.

"Hey, fuckass, we're here. Get off your fucking lazy ass and get out of the fucking truck. It's vomit-inducing to have to sit next to this chumbucket." Karkat's typical angry voice sounded off, and just as usual every bit of it was either an insult or a demand. Eridan leaned forward so that Sollux could see his upset face.

"Chumbucket? Did you really just call me a chumbucket? I thought wwe wwere friends, Karkat!" It was almost impossible for Sollux not to grind his teeth every time he heard that ridiculous accent. He sighed and forced the door open, hopping out of the truck before his moirail could shove him out instead.

"Girlth, girlth… you're both fucking pretty. Can we pleathe jutht get inthide? It'th tho cold that I can feel my thuperior intellect freething ath we thpeak." Sollux tugged his jacket on as he walked away. He could hear both of them yelling responses, but he decided to ignore them and continue on his way, stopping only once he reached the front entrance. His quirky friends caught up to him a few moments later, arguing faster than either of them could breathe. He shook his head as Eridan opened the door; even before he had, the pounding of the music could be felt vibrating through the cement. With the door open, the loud and upbeat music assaulted their ears. The sea-dweller strolled right on in, his cape billowing slightly as he entered the still air of the club, so much warmer than that of the biting chill that permeated the Chicago wind.

"Ready to meet these girls? Davve said that they were 'cool' ."Eridan raised a single eyebrow. Of course the only thing he was thinking of was filling his quadrants, so Sollux decided to just stay quiet. Karkat, on the other hand, didn't share his ideology.

"Strider? You brought us here because Dave-Fucking-Strider said that they were cool?! You, Eridan Ampora, are the fucking stupidest creature to ever receive a motherfucking think pan, you shadow dropping, chitinos tunnel!" Eridan glared down at Karkat and continued on down a staircase, leaving Karkat and Sollux standing in the entrance. His moirail shook his head, his short horns flashing under his unkempt black hair. "You know if we don't follow the fuckass that he'll just end up killing everyone in there when these new trolls shoot him down for fucking matespriteship, right?"

"Then I guethh we have to follow him, right?" Karkat didn't bother answering. Instead, he headed down the stairs after Eridan, annoyance clear on his face. Sollux followed his friend down the stairs, trying hard not to laugh. Karkat was still trying to take care of everybody and keep them in line even though they had been out of the game for almost three years now. It was probably just habit, but Sollux also knew that it was just part of Karkat's attitude

It didn't take them long to find their friends; Eridan being the only person wearing a cape, Terezi the only one with a cane, Feferi the only one wearing goggles, and Dave at his turntables playing the music that everybody was dancing to. Dave had applied for this gig right after the end of the game, and had gotten an even bigger ego when he was hired. Terezi usually hung out with him whenever Karkat was busy, much to his everlasting annoyance. That was only because Terezi was his matesprite, of course. Which annoyed Sollux greatly, but it made Karkat rather ecstatic, so he never said anything. But if Terezi licked his face tonight…

"Karkles!" Terezi threw her arms around Karkat and kissed him full on the lips. Karkat barely caught her, stumbling slightly before finally steadying them. He blushed slightly when Terezi finally pulled back, giggling and smiling wide. He picked up her cane off the edge of Dave's system and wrapped on of her hands around it, a faint smile on his lips. "And how is my Karkles today? Hee-hee-hee!"

"I'm fucking fine, Terezi. Gog, there's no reason to act like a complete psycho about it." Karkat pulled back, leaving his hand wrapped around Terezi's. Despite his constant curses and all of the arguments, Terezi and Karkat really did love each other. That was how it always was with him; the worse the insults and the rude gestures, the more he actually liked it. For example, the more that he bitched at Terezi for being so "psycho", the more he actually enjoyed it.

Sollux slipped into the booth next to Feferi. Eridan and Gamzee were both leaning over the edge of the booth's back, each on either side of a troll Sollux could not identify. He took a moment to look her over as everyone laughed, as they would notice him the moment they were calm. This new troll's long choppy hair was pulled back, only a few long strands freed to frame her sharp cheekbones. Her cat-like horns could've put Nepeta's to shame, if Nepeta had been present, and her insignia was a set of claw marks that slanted up to the left. Glasses hid the sky blue of her bright eyes, and her sharp fangs protruded from black painted lips. All in all, she looked like someone who would beat the crap out of him, but was pretty no less. Just not his type.

"Sollux!" Feferi's arms chocked Sollux out of his silent observation as she hugged him. He laughed and wrapped an arm around her tiny frame. "How are you, glub?" He sighed happily. It always cheered him up to hear his friend's excited glubbing.

"I'm doing okay, Ff. How are you? I haven't theen you in quite thome time."

Feferi beamed up at him and shrugged. "I've been glubbing good." Sollux looked in the direction of the blue blood, silently asking Feferi who she was. "Oh, how stupid of me! This is Katana. She and her sister just moved in with Terezi. They used to room with Nepeta and Equius in Florida."

"'Sup maman?" Katana took this as her cue to speak. She leaned forward on crossed arms, her sharp nails tapping on the ceramic table top.

Sollux inclined his head slightly, "Nothing much. I'm Thollux." He offered the girl a hand, which she took, careful of her claw like nails. He noticed briefly that there were some deep scars extending from her wrist up into her sleeve, but brushed the thought off as she started to speak,

"Sollux, eh? That makes you one of our new neighbors. Sweet. Maybe you can hit us up whenever I ffeel like my next paparty." She smiled, flashing those dangerous teeth. The more she talked, the more that Sollux felt as though he were talking to Gamzee. She even seemed to be as relaxed as he was; her arms behind her head as she slouched down.

"Uth?"

"Yeeeeah, mame and mamy sister, Pop. You'll all be seeing her shortly." She gave a short nod as she smiled up at Strider. Strider nodded back and looked up at the empty stage, almost as if he was waiting for someone. Karkat joined the conversation as he and Terezi sat back down, Terezi balancing on his lap.

"What kind of fucking name is Pop? Was she born in the last three fucking sweeps or something? That's the only way some fuckass would name their fucking kid Pop." Karkat started to roll his eyes before he saw the careful look that Katana currently had.

"No. She's almost seven sweeps, same as me." She looked up at Strider and added, "That's about twenty-one years, maman."

"Then who the fuck named her?"

"Well, in all technicalities, her name is Poppii. With two I's." Katana shifted uncomfortably as she watched Karkat. "I don't think we've been introduced yet. I'm Katana Dweler."

Karkat's eyes seemed to jump two sizes in diameter at this. "Wait… Your sister's name is Poppii… And your last fucking name is Dweler…? Holy fucking shit. Poppii-fucking-Dweler is here? Right now?" Karkat jumped to his feet and started looking around, his eyes wide.

"What the fuck kk? What'th the big deal?" If Terezi could've rolled her eyes, she would've at this point. Instead, the troll shook her head and tapped her cane on the table.

"Poppii Dweler is Karkles' current idol. She competed on the Singing Bee and won. She's the first troll to do anything in the social media, and happens to be a candy red blood, and is therefore the idol of thousands. Including Karkles." She ended this with her signature giggle, and Sollux had to fight the urge to grit his teeth into a fine powder.

"Why don't all of you have dinner with us? Gog knows she could use it. She's been refusing to leave the hive since we got ourselves here." Katana examined her nails in a bored fashion, her eyes half closed. She looked up at everyone and flashed that friendly, relaxed smile. "I sure as ffuck don't care if you all wanna."

"Fuck yes!" Karkat leaned down and looked at her, his hands planted flat on the table. "I would fucking love to come to fucking dinner." A few laughs rose from his enthusiasm, but all in all, everyone agreed to attend dinner the following night. Right about then, the lights over the stage turned on and a relatively small troll in towering heels walked out.

Sollux was struck dumb the moment he saw her. She seemed nervous as she took center stage in front of the club, continuously fidgeting with her bracelets and the sleeves of her dress. On the right shoulder of her dress was her insignia, a bright candy red flower. Her hair had been cut into heavy layers on the top, where it stuck out any which way, but was long and smooth to her mid back on the bottom. There was also no way that you could miss her double set of horns, the uppermost pair of which shot straight up from her head, the shorter of which curled up and back, almost like a rams.

But none of that was what caught Sollux. It was the fact the he (and only he, as he was beginning to notice) could tell that this troll was, without a doubt, psionic.