TWs: Fainting, brief arguing, depressive symptoms, implied/referenced PTSD. Stay safe :)

Uranus peered at the object in his hands, analyzing it carefully.

Neptune's smile fell into a small pout as he watched his cousin, "Well? Say hello to them!"

Uranus clicked his tongue, sighing at the ridiculousness of speaking to an inanimate object, "Uh- hello?"

Seconds passed and Uranus slumped his shoulders. He frowned, opening his mouth to say something but was cut off.

"You're not what I was expecting."

Uranus raised his eyebrows, casting his gaze on the NovaStar, "Excuse me?"

"Cold, quiet, insecure..." The NovaStar didn't explain, continuing to go on, "You'll do nicely."

"What...?" Uranus furrowed his eyebrows, becoming fed up with the Star in his hands.

"Your aura. Every Star can sense a planet's aura once it unlocks its true potential. Your Sun is no different- I can tell he's unlocked more than half of his powers."

"So...? What do you think, Uranus?" Neptune leaned over a grin on his face.

"He's weird," Uranus replied.

"Good weird, or...?"

Uranus gave him a deadpan look, "He's weird, mate. I can't stress it enough."

Neptune laughed, "Well, you guys can get to know each other then! I'm sure you two will get along!"

"Eh, if you're so sure, mate..." Uranus frowned.

"How does that work...?" Earth muttered, shifting closer so he could look at the NovaStar, "You just touch it and it can interact with you?"

"We connect ourselves by linking to your thoughts," Messier spoke, "Every Star can do it- even your Sun. Though, planets are different than Stars- while planets need to have touched a NovaStar, Stars have no problem reaching each other through the mind."

"That's cool!" Neptune grinned, "Apparently, they can connect to our thoughts the moment we touch the NovaStar."

"What happens if I...?" Earth reached out.

"Earth!" Luna yelled, pulling the other's arm back while Uranus shifted away.

"Hey-!"

"Are you crazy!? You don't know what could happen if you, a planet with life, touch that!" Luna glared, tightening his hold on Earth's arm.

"It was only going to be for a second!" Earth frowned, clicking his tongue as he pushed his moon away, "What's the worst that could happen, anyway?"

Neptune hummed, "Messier?"

The NovaStar in question thought for a moment, droning out until he came up with a response, "It's hard to say what would happen if a planet with life were to touch a NovaStar. I've never encountered such a rarity until now."

Shaking his head, Neptune looked at the others, "He doesn't know."

"Neither does Wěi," Uranus spoke.

"Well, what could go wrong?" Earth inquired, "It's not like it'll exterminate my life. Right...?"

"It's unlikely... NovaStars are much cooler than Stars since we're practically corpses." Messier said. Neptune laughed under his breath.

"It's not likely." Neptune smiled, "I suggest poking it with your index finger- see if anything happens then."

"I dunno 'bout this, mate..." Uranus sighed, "If you start hurting after a second, I will throw Wěi into the void."

"What?" The NovaStar hissed.

"Fair enough." Neptune shrugged.

"I am right here, you waste of Stardust!" Wěi yelled. Uranus glared, tightening his grip on the NovaStar, "Ack-!"

"I will throw you," Uranus scowled before lowering the object to Earth's level, "Careful, Earth."

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Earth rolled his eyes, then peered at the glowing eight-pointed Star. Slowly, he raised his arm, reaching out his index finger toward the NovaStar.

Luna whimpered, biting his lip as he watched with anxiety flooding through his core. Mars, Uranus, and Neptune watched with curiosity and apprehension.

Earth's finger touched the surface. He gasped upon feeling how hot it was, yet he couldn't find it in himself to pull away.

Before he knew it, he blacked out, spiraling down a relentless void that grabbed him by the throat. He couldn't move- he couldn't speak.

"Earth!" He heard a familiar voice echoing through the atmosphere and reverberating in his head.

Squinting his eyes, he made out a bleary figure before him. Their shape was contorted and Earth didn't know what he was looking at until the figure shifted closer.

"That looked like it hurt... are you okay, Earth?" That voice. Earth recognized that voice.

Slowly, he blinked, his brows creasing as he peered at the figure, "Theia...?"

...

"Earth!" Luna, Mars, and Uranus shouted as they watched with wide eyes. Earth suddenly jerked back, making a pained noise as his eyes closed. Mars took the blue and green Celestial into his arms, checking him over. Luna found himself attaching to Earth's arm, hugging it tightly.

"What'd you do!?" Uranus snapped, tightening his grip on the NovaStar in his hand.

"Ah-! Why are you assuming I did something!? Your friend was the one who wanted to 'see what would happen.'" Wěi responded, his tone sharp.

"Messier doesn't think it was Wěi's fault." Neptune spoke, "In fact, he thinks it's Earth's."

Uranus snapped his head to look at the other, "What? What is that supposed to mean? Earth didn't know this would happen to him, mate!"

"Sure, but Earth is a planet with life." Neptune shrugged, "His life is much, much different from any planet or moon, meaning he's different from the rest of us... huh."

Neptune raised a hand to his chin, a thoughtful expression rising on his face as he looked down. Uranus raised an eyebrow, "What is it?"

"Wasn't there another planet here at one point? Other than Nine..." Neptune uttered, "Ugh, I can't remember..."

"You mean Theia?" Mars spoke up after reassuring Luna that Earth was alright.

"Yes! That's the one- I think." Neptune snapped his fingers, "I don't know much about what happened then... but I have a feeling..."

Neptune covered his mouth, zoning out as a thought occurred to him, 'Could NovaStars be connected to past Celestial objects...?'

"A plausible theory." Messier spoke, "One has to wonder what happens when a planet dies... everyone knows what happens to their body, not their soul."

'Planets have souls?' Neptune tilted his head.

"They have cores, and that's what makes every planet unique. Every planet, from the Rocky Inner Planets to the Outer Giants and even the moons... every single one of you has a middle." Messier explained, "When a planet dies, the core is obsolete... meaning it's completely destroyed and tossed into the atmosphere. The rest of the pieces, however, become something new thousands of years later."

Neptune nodded, 'So... how does that relate here?'

"Bring me closer to the Earth. I have to check to make sure my theory is correct."

'Alright.' Neptune reached into his jacket, bringing out his NovaStar.

"Mate?" Uranus raised an eyebrow as he watched his cousin shift closer to the Rocky Planet, "What are you doing?"

"Messier said he wanted to check something." Neptune shrugged, bringing Messier's Novae closer to the unconscious planet.

Luna eyed the blue Celestial cautiously, watching with a piercing stare.

Once the NovaStar was positioned by the Earth's closed eyes, he put forth a bit of his energy, connecting his mind with Earth.

In the ethereal, one would close his eyes and concentrate as he triangulated his hands, indexes, and thumbs connecting. One would then take a deep breath and open all his senses to the Celestial he was bonding with.

It took Messier a few minutes to get a full picture. He had yet to do a full reading in a long time.

"Messier...?" Neptune whispered, frowning as the other didn't say anything for some time.

One would twitch in the ethereal, a strong wave of emotions overpowering his form. He grunted, snapping his eyes open.

"Just as I thought..." He uttered, "Pain, sadness, grief, helplessness, anger, fear, numbness, and guilt..."

"What is it, Messier?" Neptune brought the NovaStar close to him.

"They're all symptoms of Survivor's Guilt."

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I wouldn't kill off characters, but I will make them suffer :)

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