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The last few nights had been sleepless ones, and Laodica was starting to wear down to the edge of breaking. Falling through colors was nice an all, except for the falling part. Maybe the aurora was a message, calling to her and to others, but now... now it was gone, the storm having carried it away and leaving strange but beautiful little beads everywhere. She had picked up a few as she walked out, enjoying the night sky free of the twisting colors, but didn't want to pick up too many.

What if they were dangerous in large quantities? She didn't really know that they were, of course, but neither did Laodica know that they weren't, so it really was safer to only keep a few of them. Even though they were beautiful... Spotting a familiar blonde in the distance, she picked up one more of the strange beads and skipped over to her, eyes bright and wondering.

"Dubhe! Hello!" She chirped, and found a smile creeping over her features despite her fatigue and generally unhappy mood. "What do you think of the beads? Do you think they're messages? Maybe - oh, maybe they're wishes, all wrapped up and solidified so someone could collect them!"

"Do - do you think so?" Laodica asked, eyes widening as she looked over the beads she held in her hands. She hadn't thought about them being a sign of any sort... was it really that simple? The aurora had to have been what was keeping her - and other people - from sleeping, but maybe it was just because whoever was sending the messages was having trouble getting them through!

"Did you not sleep well, either?" she added thoughtfully, lifting a bead to squint through it at the sky up above. "Because I kept dreaming about falling whenever I'd try..."

"Maybe," Laodica said thoughtfully. "But if that's the case, I wouldn't say the aurora was awful at all. If anything, it may have just been someone trying to make a point - probably in the only way they could..." She trailed off, aware of how sad that sounded, then shrugged. "Either way, I guess the message got sent at last, or the aurora would still be here." And whatever else was going on, the aurora was most definitely gone, these strange beads that had formed from it the only sign that it had ever been there in the first place.

"Do you think we could keep some of the beads?" She asked, considering the small objects thoughtfully. "I mean... too many probably isn't safe, not if they could keep people awake, too, but... they're so pretty..."

"Nice, no, but..." Laodica shrugged and looked around for somewhere to sit down; she felt silly standing up like this when they could talk more comfortably. "I don't know that it was evil, either? Maybe it just... was, and the effects it had didn't mean it was good or bad, just something that happened."

She paused, then, and smiled a little sadly. "You have little sisters?"

"I don't think we could swim in them, if that's what you're thinking," Laodica said, toeing the beads herself. "And... half or not, a sister's a sister. They sound nice..." Like her sister, though she didn't know what it was like to be the older one in the equation. Either way, family was always a good thing to have, and she was grateful her friend - her friend, forget the war and whatever rules there were out there - had them.

"... Do you think they'll wash away or something, the next time it's warm enough to rain instead of snow?"

"Probably?" Laodica offered a shrug, frowning. "But I don't think anyone should keep too many of them. Being close might make you sick." Or at least sleepless... again. Which wouldn't be good for anyone. "I don't think your sisters would be very happy with that..."

"Umm.... maybe they'll just dissolve if they're left alone for a while?" Laodica offered, frowning. "Except for any we save, I mean. I hate to just leave them out here but there are more than just you or I could really do anything about, anyway..."

She blinked, considering, then shrugged. "Unless we try to borrow a street sweeper?"