TW: Glowy Eyed!Xephos (Again, pretty much canon) (Right? He's got bright blue eyes...)

Falling

falling

fall

           i

                      n

              g

was that the right move?

falling

were they worth it?

"HONEYDEW!!"

who's that?

"HONEYDEW-" Rumbles. Clatters. Something is shifting and the voice is still talking, panicking. "-friend? CAN- CAN YOU HEAR ME?"

The ground is rather nice.

I think I'll just lay here. Here is nice. Honeydew thought, staring up at the ceiling. It was a nice ceiling. He could make out spots of dirt, maybe some minerals too, but it was mostly smooth stone. Cool stone. Like the stone underneath him. Almost as cool. The bright... substance. lava. Lava in the corner. Lava is warm. It makes the ground warm. Lava is dangerous. How many times have I mined into it?

...

How'd I get here?

"Honeydew, oh thank goodness." Moving. Lifted. Sitting up now. That's more comfortable, I guess. The air is colder than the stone.

"Xeph?" Blue. All I see is blue. A bluer blue than the sky. Bluer than diamonds. Where is it coming from?

"I - I - I thought you were gone- I thought- oh, flippin' heck! there was noth- just empty -nothing! just nothing- I turned and -just just the ore- just empty- I thought you were dead! I ju- there was- turned around and you were gone. Just gone like that!" He's rambling. I don't need rambling. Stop talking. Stop worrying. I need this question answered. and he isn't listening. Where is the blue coming from? "Honeydew? Friend?"

The dwarf blinks, his eyes squinted up to block out as much as the blue as possible. That overwhelming blue.

"Why is everything so blue?"

"Huh?"

"Why is everything so blue?" Honeydew says again, repeating slower. That'll help his friend understand. Then the spaceman blinks, and suddenly everything falls into place. "Oh. It's you!"

Xephos just stares at his friend. Has he lost his mind? Did the fall crack his skull? It wasn't that far was it?

"Honeydew are you alright there? Did you hit your head on anything?" He looks up, judging how far down they were now. Honeydew follows, tilting his head up to see the large crooked hole in the ceiling. How had he not seen that before? Never mind. He had a task at hand. Xephos is now running his hands over Honeydew's head, through his hair, searching for any damage, a wet spot of blood or a jagged portion where sharp rock met skull.

"No, listen. It's you! Your eyes, they're glowing brighter than usual." Honeydew sits up further and pushes Xephos' concerned hand away. Xephos blinks again, brows frowning in concern. He doesn't respond. "Why is it so blue?" Honeydew says, each word separate

"My eyes are always- they've always been- they just are blue, Honeydew." Xephos digs in his pack, ignoring the question, finding a mess of bandages, wrapped around a spare torch or two. "Here let's- just let's just wrap your head- let's put these down-" But he doesn't place the torches down. They are placed out of the way, clattering lightly on the ground. He didn't place the torches, Honeydew repeats, He didn't place them. He always places torches. "We'll wrap your head, just in case- in case anything's- something's happened. Okay? Then we'll get back to the surface."

They sit in silence while Xephos wraps the bandages around his head. It dulls some of the throbbing, but that question still aches. Once done, the man sits back, shuffling his pack back together. "Did I place the torches down, Honeydew? We'll need to collect them. We don't have many and we have to get back."

"No. You didn't place any."

"How's it- oh." Honeydew smiles. Xephos has figured it out. Why the room was so bright. Xephos looks away. He swallows, staring at the discarded torches.

"It's uh-" Now he has to explain. This hasn't happened before and Honeydew isn't going to leave it be. " um, thing is- it's an ex-, er evolutionary- a trait- from my my- my ancestors." He takes a breath. "When, um, when we get frightened- like a predator has caught us out hunting alone- all by ourselves or- someone we care about falls, uhm- down a mine shaft, our eyes, they um, glow brighter. Keep the night away." His voice gets quieter and quieter as he speaks. Honeydew just stares for a moment, blinking in the blue light that has filled the room. He must still be scared, he thinks, it's not fading any. Is he embarrassed? Why? That's a good thing right, to keep the dark at bay?

"That's-" Xephos glances up from his hands when Honeydew finally speaks. "That's, really cool."

"Ye-yeah?"

"Definitely!" Honeydew grins, nudging his friend. "It's super cool! Your eyes, they freaking glow man! Come on, that's cool."

"Okay." Xephos smiles. "Let's get you back. Can you stand?"

"I'm good." He gets to his feet, wrapping an arm around Xephos' waist to balance. "Seriously! Your eyes glow and the monsters are scared of you? How is that not cool?" My friend was worried, his brain says. He was worried, and now his eyes are really bright, making the whole cave blue and pretty and- and he cares. He really does care sometimes.

"All the time." Xephos whispers. Oh, talking aloud apparently. Honeydew just grins back.

Credit to countthelions on tumblr