The outburst caused things between them to be tense, but not enough that Valkyrie told Aurora to hit the road, so she was at least thankful for that. The two, however, remained quiet as they returned to the woman's ship. The surge of power from that electrical fence had only lasted so long and Aurora could feel herself weakening and she hated it. She needed at the very least a temporary fix before she could return to the stars. She had to defend Asgard and help her friends, she could not rest without knowing she had done what she was called to do. However, if she waited too long she was going to be in no shape to defeat Hela, she had barely been in the shape to do when she had all her power.

"What do we do now?" Aurora finally broke the heavy silence as they loaded onto the ship. Without a word, Valkyrie handed her a drink.

"We drink and we wait."

"Wait for what?"

"The show to begin," the woman explained as she settled into the control center, "The contest of champions, what I sold your God to. You're lucky I didn't sell you off, too, I would have gotten quite the payday for a two-for-one. That contest would rip you to shreds."

Aurora scoffed as she crossed her arms and sat down on the metal ledge that dipped into the control center, sitting diagonally behind where the other woman rested. "You cannot kill me, I am not human."

"Maybe not now," Valkyrie began with a shrug as she took a swig of her drink, "but it doesn't take a genius to see that you're weakening, right? When I first found you, you were as bright as the sun. Now, not so much. You need a hit of some stardust, I'm guessing, huh? Soon enough you'll wither away like the rest of us stuck on this stupid planet."

Although she would never let her expression give it away, the words Valkyrie spoke terrified her. Aurora couldn't let herself fade away or remain human for long, there was no one else to guard the stars and all they spanned. Who would protect her people if she was here? Human? She wanted to die at just the thought of being so puny and weak. With the woman's words, she stayed silent, instead opting to look at the window at the heaps of garbage falling from the multiple portals in the sky. God, of course, she had to land on one of the worst planets imaginable. As the sun began to settle behind the horizon line, Valkyrie started up the ship. Aurora realized the higher they got that they were flying up above an arena.

As the blazing lights blinded them, Aurora realized it was a giant projection of the Grandmaster. Scoffing at the image, she moved to sit on the edge of the open area of Valkyrie's ship, next to the other woman who miraculously had another bottle in her hand.

"How do you drink that stuff? It's disgusting," Aurora grimaced as the woman offered her a sip.

She shrugged, taking a swig, "Once you have enough shit you want to forget, you stop caring about the taste. At this point, I drink this shit like it's water."

Aurora looked at the woman with a piteous expression, not knowing how to react to such somber words. So, she opted to say nothing as she looked over at the competition going on below them. There was a thunderous roar of applause and noise as the first champion, some creature named the Hulk it seemed, stormed into the arena. He was ginormous and Aurora was beginning to lose hope for her friend. She couldn't stand to watch Thor get hurt. With a sigh, she turned away from the turmoil.

"I can't watch this," Aurora spoke sadly, her voice quivering as she tried to keep it together, "I can't believe you would let my friend die like this."

"Why not use your freaky light powers to save him, then?" Valkyrie teased, her words slightly slurred, but not too badly. "Oh, wait, you can't. Just sit and let the disaster happen, I do it every day on this stupid planet."

"Is that how you became the last surviving member of your race? Sitting and watching?" Aurora shot back with a scoff, crossing her arms and still actively looking away from the contest of champions.

This clearly struck a chord as the woman seethed, "You don't know the slightest thing about me. I had to watch my sisters get slaughtered, I watched the love of my life die in my stead. Do not talk to me about cowardice just because I know when to run and when to fight. I wanted to live, so I chose to run, but at the cost of my entire race."

"I have seen billions die," Aurora spoke, her voice lost and far away as the words left her mouth, "I may be young in this form, but you forget that my guardianship has spanned centuries upon centuries. I've seen children get killed in wars that were not meant for them, I have seen gods crumble, I have seen viruses wipe out entire populations. That being said, if there are or were others like me, I cannot imagine a greater pain than watching every one of them perish."

"What are you even trying to say?"

"That I am sorry," the words left Aurora's mouth with a bitter taste, but they were true regardless.

The other woman was silent at first, reluctant to speak as their eyes met. Aurora may have been going crazy, but she might have even seen some kindness in the woman's gaze. There was a spark of something there.

"Thank you," Valkyrie finally broke the silence, a soft smile adorning her normally harsh features, "You remind me of her, almost."

"Who?"

"The one I loved," the woman explained and it clicked. Valkyrie was referencing the one who died for her, Aurora could not imagine making such a sacrifice. "Maybe it's the hair, I tend to have a thing for blondes. She was kind, too, kinder than I could ever be. The sunlight gleamed in her eyes and her smile, something about her was so... ethereal. Maybe that's why you remind me of her; the absolute unrealness of her. Except you're actually made of stars, she simply glowed like she was."

Aurora was surprised by this small bout of honesty and she had absolutely no idea how to respond to it. So, she stopped thinking and simply spoke from the heart as best she could, "I think that's the nicest thing you have ever said, even if you're complimenting her more than you complimented me in that sentence. She must have been smart, too... if she loved you."

The smile on Valkyrie's face was unlike any other Aurora had seen. There was no cunning, no malice, it was a type of feeling Aurora fed off of: Happiness. The woman bit her lip before her expression shifted as she noticed something, "You're glowing again."

"Thanks to you," was all Aurora offered as an explanation at first, "I am born and bred from good, so my power is stemming from your happiness. Or, at least your remembrance and love.

The smile returned and Valkyrie raised her drink in a toast, "To Ira and those you have also loved and lost."

"To Ira," Aurora muttered to herself as she relished in the moment they shared. Maybe, just maybe, Aurora could turn this around.

we can all collectively agree that the woman that died in the flashback to protect Brunnhilde was her girlfriend, right? right! anyway i know thor is in mortal peril in this scene but thor said lesbian rights and let them have their moment anywayyyy i wish more people read this book because i love aurora so much but fuck y'all imma keep writing her and no one can stop me heheh