A/N:
I'm late on this. My bad! I actually stopped myself from making it even longer—which would have meant an even longer writing process. I still might go back and tweak things, but… Well, all in all, I'm proud of myself for buckling down and writing almost 6,000 words in less than a week on the same topic.
I think it takes at least a half an hour to read so buckle up. I attempted to make this read similar to that of a (full with no commercials) episode besides a few insights into what a character is thinking. I feel I kinda failed only because there's so much I could have described in greater detail. On a side note, this takes place sometime after "Bon Bon The Birthday Clown."
This is also available on my AO3 account, and there is already a link to it on my art Tumblr.
Anywho, happy JanTom week!
UPDATE: I fixed a few things grammatically, but nothing big has changed here. Just a note for those of you following this... Also, I have been playing around with some other JanTom story ideas in my head, but I likely won't get around to writing anything anytime soon. Perhaps when the season returns and my obsession level increases.
"Aw, man. Everything's closing so early!"
Star looked up from her third stick of cotton candy that night to see Janna swiftly gesturing at yet another "CLOSED" sign forbidding them from entering yet another shop in the large outdoor mall. A family of bug-eyed creatures passing by stopped for a short moment to gape at the aggravated brunette before walking briskly away from the human after she began to pin her sharp gaze on them.
"Oh, come oooon. Cheer up, Janna!" Star chimed before busily sucking up the rest of her cotton candy in mere seconds. The hearts on her cheeks looked just about ready to pop as she shifted the sugary snack around her mouth to continue her motivating speech.
Jana could just barely understand the words "nachos" and "movie" coming from her friend's full mouth before something about "Marco" and "school night" made the blonde's smile dim.
"Star," she began with a straight face, bracing herself for the optimistic girl's inevitable dejection. "No offense, but a night of nachos and a movie… isn't really what I had in mind. That may be fine for Marco, but… Well, he's not here. We don't have to play by his rules. Forget about him."
While the smile did not return to the normally jolly teen's face, no grimace overtook her expression either. Instead, the girl retained a perfect poker face that Janna was shocked she could pull off… She was just glad the poor girl—Strange way to describe her since she's actually a princess, Janna laughed internally.—didn't look too disappointed. She swore sometimes that Marco was too good of an influence on the eccentric blonde… or perhaps, there was another reason that Star was so fixated on doing what Marco said…
Janna shook her head at the thought. Another time. This was supposed to be a fun night to clear their heads.
"Okay," muttered the future queen, crossing her arms. Besides her fidgeting hands mindlessly playing with the lace around her sleeves, Star was taking it well. Perhaps, Marco wouldn't preoccupy her mind all night.
"Well, what did you have in mind… Janna Banana?"
… and like that… the familiar Star smile was back and accompanied by some waggling eyebrows to boot!
"Well, these stores closed—… pretty early, don't cha think?"
"Uhhhh, yeah?"
"Weeeell… Maybe they all closed for the same reason."
Janna noted the sudden squinting of the large blue eyes currently darting around her face as a sure sign of a lengthy miscommunication.
"Yeah… The mall closes at 11. The stores in the mall can't stay open when the mall is cloooosed. There'd be no point!"
"That's not what I meant," Jana interrupted, a small smirk growing on her laidback expression. "It's only nine thirty, Star, and a majority of the shops here are already closed. I think there's—"
She paused, leaning over to Star with a flattened hand to cover the view of her mouth from anybody else in the nearly empty shopping center.
"—something fishy going on here."
A sharp gasp emitted from the blonde before she hushed herself, leaning into Janna in a similar fashion.
"Do you think it's something… ILEEEGALLLL?"
Janna remained silent for a moment, deciding she'd have to teach Star how to properly whisper. Another time...
"Maybe," Janna responded normally, straightening her back as she raised herself back to her full height. "So you in?"
Suddenly, a small chirp emitted from Star's purse, drawing all of her attention away from her current predicament.
Probably Marco, the thief across from her predicted… and judging by the bittersweet grin, definitely Marco.
"Earth to Star—err, wait," the brunette began, waving her hands.
Where were they anyway?
"Random dimension to Star," she continued. "Do you copy?"
"Copy what?"
"Nevermind. Do you wanna find out what this mall is hiding after dark or not?"
Star glanced between the phone she had been unintentionally gripping for dear life and her beanie-loving friend with a sharp gaze that dared her to pick the more fun option.
"Alright, I'm innnnn! I mean, pfttttt! Late shmate, am I right? Haha…Ha."
The hesitation was still there clearly, but Janna chose to ignore it for the time being. Star deserved a break from the turmoil that had become her life.
"Awesome, then let's go. ' Heard melodies are sweet, but unheard melodies are sweeter. '"
"What?"
"It's a quote by John Keats."
"But what does it mean?"
"It means let's goooo."
Then, before Star's confusion could derail them any further, the brown eyed troublemaker pushed her partner in crime through a series of unlit hallways veering off the main paths of the outdoor mall—the perfect place for secret meetings or entryways to be… Or at least that's what Janna told her. Although they were mostly empty, the girls did run past a few lingering staff members who they managed to squeeze a few secrets out of—specifically those regarding an event taking place—
"Below us?"
Janna shoved her loudmouthed friend out of sight of the sharp-eyed creature with twenty, beady pupils tracing their every movement.
"Thanks," she huffed at the ivory colored beast before gesturing to the hot pink graphic tee he covered his sleek skin with. "Hope ya like the keychain as much as the last owner did." Apparently, even monster—other dimensional creatures? Whatever.—men were fans of the popular boy band Love Sentence. If they weren't in such a hurry, perhaps she could have arranged a playdate for Marco with the all-seeing creature...
The duo hurried around the corner and began searching for the staff-only stairwell.
"Do you think Marco will mind we gave away his Love Sentence keychain?"
"He should take better care of his house keys. He knows who I am, Star."
After sliding his phone back into his pocket, Marco Diaz stared at his cheery reflection in the mirror. Then, his smile wavered, and he quickly splashed water onto his face to get rid of it altogether.
"Don't worry. She'll be fine," he stated confidently.
He watched as his own eyes narrowed in disbelief.
"She's going to be okay. You'll go on your date, and when you come back, everything will be fine… as it can get right now."
He smoothed out his expression once more, and this time it stayed in place without a crack of hesitation poking through.
"She's going to be okay," he repeated in an upbeat tone. "She's—... with Janna."
A small twitch erupted below Marco's right eye.
"She's with Janna."
"How'd you convince that guy to let us in, Janna?"
"A girl's got her ways."
"Uhhhh—"
"I traded for his wallet that I stole when he walked by to use the bathroom."
"Oh. Nice."
"Enough chit chat," Janna commanded as she quickly grasped Star's hand. "We're gonna be late."
The magical princess was confused yet again. How did her normal—Well, perhaps that wasn't the best way to describe Janna given her dark interests, Star reminded herself inwardly… How did her friend who has never stepped foot in this place and been with her all night know what was going on here?
"For what exactly?"
"Oh, I don't know, but from what I can tell from these crowds," the brunette explained, a sparkle in her eyes and a skip in her step as she spoke, "it's gotta be something good. Besides, isn't that what makes this even better? The mystery? The intrigue?"
"Ladies and gentlemen!" roared a voice from seemingly everywhere around them. "The show will begin in a moment!"
"Oooooooh," the blonde cheered, halting in their rush around the crowds to hop in place like a jackhammer. "A shooooow. A SHOW, JANNA!"
"Ya see? I told you this would be fun."
The duo snuck through the clusters of potential audience members meandering their way towards the arena, acquiring quite a few questioning stares from the shady creatures. Taking notice of this, the brunette paused near the massive, closed doors leading to where the show was taking place.
"Uh, Star?" Janna began, gripping the overly hyper girl's shoulder and locking her in place before she could go any further. "People are staring."
The blonde princess in all her pastel glory tilted her head to the side, prompting her friend to continue.
"I mean at us…" She peered to the side. "Maybe specifically you."
"Me?" Star glanced down at herself, patting herself repeatedly in multiple places as if she might come across something embarrassing on her person. "What do you...?"
Janna sighed, adjusting her beanie, before clarifying to her jittery companion. "You're wearing bright blue. You look like a princess."
"Well, yeah! I mean I am—uh... Oooooh, right. The color. Okay, I gotcha!"
"Cool," she breathed out with a shy smile, allowing her tense shoulders to slump. She hated the thought of a sad Star Butterfly. "Sorry. It's just that this is kind of a shady place where—"
Before she could finish, a bright cloud formed around them, completely concealing their appearances, before disappearing a few moments later. Before her stood Star Butterfly looking very not Star Butterfly like in a black, bell-shaped dress; charcoal colored leggings; and shiny, black boots. Janna couldn't recall a time when Star didn't stick out like a sore thumb in the brightest outfits imaginable.
"There we go. I hope you like your outfit!" the mischievous princess sang, pulling her shocked friend past the incredibly heavy doors and into the barely lit arena.
"My what?" Janna scanned herself the same way Star had just a few moments ago. Her own outfit was now in a grayscaled and black version as well. "Hmm, alright." She nodded absentmindedly, allowing herself to be pulled down to seating closer to the pitch black stage.
Finding an empty section, the duo reclined in a pair of seats, squinting their eyes at the barely visible stage to get an idea of what type of show they were waiting for.
"Hmmmmm."
"Hmmmmm."
Besides the casual chatter taking place around them, the girls remained silent, allowing the dread of what they had both simultaneously realized to sink in…
"We should have got snacks," Janna divulged. Sliding her feet off of their resting position atop the seat in front of her, she rose from her surprisingly plush seat.
Star pulled her hollow gaze away from the barely visible center stage to question her friend's movements before someone behind her made her lose focus as well as all rational thought in that moment.
"JANNA, NO!"
"Shhhh," said teen snapped, suppressing the startled girl's clamor with her quick hand. "Do you want to get us kicked out?"
Much to her surprise, the blonde considered what she had said seriously for a moment before shaking her head so fast she thought her hand, still covering her mouth, might get whiplash.
"Star, what's gotten into you?"
"My dad's here," she whispered once Janna had dropped her hand.
"You mean the king of your… whatever?"
"Yesssss." She pointed over Janna's shoulder to where the King of Mewni sat, surrounded by weary creatures eyeing the short mustached man. "Ohmygod. Ohmygod. Ohmygod. We have to get out of here."
Another cloud of surging, magical energy appeared around them, and Janna coughed thoroughly to eject the sparkles and rainbows from her throat. She just barely noticed the dull, grey hoodie concealing the thick, blonde locks of the magical princess.
"What?! We just got here!" She turned to study the crudely disguised man in the still darkened room."Maybe he won't notice you."
"Janna!" Star hissed.
"He's wearing sunglasses in the dark! If anyone is in trouble here, it's him. He practically screams, 'I look suspicious.'"
Immediately following Janna's quip, an alarm went off in Star's head.
"You're right," she gulped, sinking in her seat. "We have to stay and make sure nothing happens to my dad."
"Sounds good to me," the dark haired teen agreed, shrugging her shoulders before pulling her friend up from her distressed position. "Now let's go see if they're selling popcorn—"
"I thought I saw a familiar, pink cloud near the doors," a silvery voice laughed.
Behind Star stood a tall boy dressed in a sleek, ebony suit adorned with an eye-catching tie to match the scarlet in his widened eyes.
"Tom?"
Janna glanced between her shabbily clothed friend and the horned teen eyeing her friend's unshapely hoodie... with all three of his eyes.
"Janna," she smirked, gesturing to herself as she stepped around Star. "Hi." She immediately tugged the popcorn bucket in the demon's lazy grip towards herself, plucking out a few pieces and popping them into her mouth.
"Hi?" the ashy-skinned teen replied, tilting his head slightly at the unknown brunette with eyes glued on his sharp pointed horns. "So what brings you two to the underground ring?"
"Underground ring?" questioned the girls in sync. Janna stopped her finger half way from one of Tom's white-tipped horns, falling back onto the heels of her feet.
"Ladies and gentlemen," the disembodied voice from before announced, "in this corner—"
The mouths of both girls dropped as their eyes lit up in anticipation.
"Oh, it's starting," the well-dressed boy commented, backing into the seat behind him alongside the starry-eyed duo. The stage lit up before them, a single spotlight dusting over the crowds before quickly shining over a corner of the ring where a large muscled creature clad in red bellowed in response.
The rowdy audience roared a variety of crude things after having waited so patiently. In contrast, Star jittered in her seat while Janna settled for whistling suggestively, snickering between each sharp sound.
After the opponent was announced and shown, the recently formed trio watched as a short, bug-eyed referee stepped in between the two, heated fighters.
"See the guy on the right in red?" The girls nodded, glancing between Tom and the creature in question. "I got money on that guy. He's the unofficial champion that's most likely to win." He reclined in his seat, propping his feet up onto the top of the empty seat in front of him and linking his hands together behind his head.
Janna hummed in approval, snatching some of the popcorn from the bucket going ignored in Tom's lap. On the other side of her, Star peeked over at her boisterous father.
"I hope my dad's not here for that," she remarked, suddenly having a difficult time swallowing. "I remember one time when he came in for breakfast—after being out all night…" Her eyes narrowed in distaste at the memory. "He was only wearing boxers, and his beard was cut in the shape... of an eagle." Her hands moved together to imitate wings. "And I think he had a tattoo that he didn't realize he had, but my mom magic-ed me out of the room before I could see it."
Janna paused mid-bite, an intact piece of popcorn lying hazardously in her dropped jaw.
"Wow… So what happens if your guy loses, Tommy Boy?"
A bit taken back by the nickname the unfamiliar girl had bestowed upon him, the sharply dressed teen stared blankly at the devious girl glancing unabashedly at the eye on his forehead.
"Oh, well, it's a 'for sure' win so there's nothing left to do but sit back and relax."
She considered asking him why a powerful demon would need to gamble to get money, but ultimately assumed it was probably a similar reason as to why Star's father was here tonight decked out in a plain suit and tie straight out of a Men in Black movie.
A bell sounded, and they turned to see the burly creatures tackle each other furiously. The brunette put her hands to her mouth, preparing to let out a fierce scream of appreciation before something occurred to her.
"Hey, wait," she muttered, uncrossing her legs. "Why exactly is this place a secret? I haven't seen anything too crazy since we came in, and it looks more official than some of the other joints I've snuck into."
"Oh, fighting for entertainment is illegal in this dimension," Tom answered dryly, peering into the half-empty bucket of popcorn that he had barely touched himself.
"The entire dimension? That's—. That's—!"
"Ridiculous?" he suggested, returning his gaze to the fighters currently sizing each other up. "Yup."
Janna sank into her seat before jumping up with the rest of the crowd in shock as the blue contender smacked the undefeated red one into the ref and then into the stands.
"AND OUR BLUE UNDERDOG HAS BECOME… THE. TOP. DOG!" the speakers thundered above the squealing fans.
The spotlight followed the red contender's nasty spill into the crowds. Both he and the referee appeared to be in too much pain to get up—Especially the ref, Janna noted. That poor man remained concerningly still beneath the fallen creature. It was only until a shaking hand making a thumbs-up squeezed its way out of the mess of jumbled limbs that the crowd was able to release their held breath.
"What?"
Janna turned away from the incredible sight as the silvery voice to her left went low. Bright red flashed before her, blinding her for a few moments. When she opened her eyes, she saw the demon in all his glory, a dark red energy radiating off of him. Instantly, a bright grin blossomed on the girl's face as his ruby red eyes scoured the stage.
"Uh-oh," sounded Star, yanking Janna's wrist in the opposite direction.
"What are you doing?" she yelped in response, planting her boots firmly on the ground and increasing her grip on the armrest between their seats.
"He's gonna blow," the blonde explained, slyly checking for where her father's focus was. Luckily for her, the short man was currently ripping apart a paper as he angrily stomped away from his seat.
"Tom."
The trio, attracting more than a few stares from the audience around them, turned to see a short, stoutly man in a sea green shirt carrying two drinks.
"Tom," he repeated calmly despite the impending doom kind of feeling of the atmosphere. Janna's grin faltered, and Tom's angry grimace did as well.
"Brian," the demon breathed out, allowing his fires to fizzle out and his eyes to revert back to normal.
Janna glared at the spectacled man. "Killjoy."
"Remember, Tom," Brian recited, handing the horned teen one of the pops he had waited an unreasonable amount of time for, "it's normal to get frustrated over daily things, but you must not allow it to overtake you."
The brown-eyed girl scoffed to herself, folding her arms over her chest. "Didn't realize losing a bet in an illegal, underground, fighting match was a daily thing."
"You're right, Brian," Tom concluded, pausing to sip from his straw.
"Buuuutttt!" Janna interfered, placing herself between the demon and his life coach. "That doesn't mean you have to give up on what you believe in." She placed a hand on both of their shoulders and looked each of them in the eye. Of course, she spent an extra few seconds looking directly into Tom's third eye. "Right? I mean you can still get to the bottom of things."
The demon hummed quizzically, weighing his options as he sipped up more of his drink. Brian, on the other head, plucked his chin thoughtfully before nodding his head.
"She's right, and this might actually be good practice for you, Tom."
"Yesss," Janna hissed as she raised her hand up, silently begging for a high-five from her uncharacteristically quiet friend. The blonde stuffed the emptied popcorn bucket into the crook of her arm before slamming her palm into the brunette's, bits of the buttery snack flying from her full mouth.
"Make a formal complaint," Brian continued, adjusting his glasses, "without using your anger."
"Yeah…" The suited teen gripped his cup, oblivious to the crinkling he was causing on its thin sides. "I'll go and sort things out—" He paused, looking his proud life coach in the eye. "—using words."
The occult enthusiast rolled her eyes, moving her hand like a mouth as Star worked hard to swallow her food without choking.
"Alright. Cool. So let's go," she declared, ushering her group past the entrance to the audience seating and towards a long hallway marked as "for staff only."
"Uhhh… Janna?"
Said girl winked at the dumbfounded princess.
"Relax," she whispered. "This is all according to my plan."
Yet again, Star wondered how her friend was suddenly the all-knowing one with places and people she had no experience with, but she chalked it up to the pure magic that was Janna.
After just a minute of walking, Tom made it known that they were heading farther and farther away from the secret entrance in the mall as the downward slant of the hall became more and more apparent. The farther they went, the more the hall resembled a cave. The cool tiles chipped into tiny pebbles and the dull walls began to form an arch. Janna's smirk grew three sizes that day.
"Hey, Star. Uh, just checking in," Marco relayed to the answering machine as he peered into the lit up microwave before him with a grim visage. Although he had originally decided to use the small oven to make himself a snack to calm down, all the microwave's buzzing seemed to do was irritate him more. "My date got canceled so I, uh, was just wondering… what you were up to…"
His eyes mindlessly traced the laser puppies' mad dash around the couch in the next room before the hidden meaning behind his words caught up to him.
"Oh, but I don't mean that you have to drop everything for me! No, I just… Uh, just stay safe?"
A beep sounded, informing him that his message was over as was the timer for his food.
"I'm such a dork."
"Marco is such a dork."
Janna nodded in agreement, her chuckling echoing down the cavern alongside Tom's.
"Yeah, if there was an award, Mr. 'Don't Forget to Floss' would win hands-down."
The blonde behind them, scraping her shoes on the thick gravel, glared at their backs with a pout. Beside her, Brian sucked from his straw as a wheezing sound echoed inside of the cup as a result. She wished he would just toss the empty thing out already.
"You guys," Star moaned, running a hand through what small amount of wild hair wasn't being confined by the drabby hoodie. "Can we stop making fun of Marco?"
"Relax, Star," Janna coaxed, waiting for Star to catch up so she could place an arm around her shoulder. "It's just a little teasing—"
"How can you tease him when he's not here?"
"—I've known Marco since we were little kids… Why he's not used to me stealing his house keys by now, I'll never know, but enough about Marco."
"Yeah, look," the demon cautioned, pointing ahead.
The eldest one in the bunch dropped his cup and almost tripped on it as all of his attention drew to what lied before them.
"Hmm, how did that get there?" he mumbled mostly to himself, subconsciously flattening out the invisible wrinkles in his sea green top.
A few feet in front of them stood a gigantic door with a strange marking carved into its pitch black material.
"That's definitely some dark magic stuff right there," Janna marveled, putting a hand out to trace a part of the intricate design with her index finger. Star chose to do the same—only with her tongue for a reason Janna could never figure out.
"Then we've come to the right place," the devil prince reported, using his telekinesis to move the large knocker and smack it against the heavy door.
The harsh smack echoed throughout the cavern, causing a confetti of dust to fall from the high ceiling and onto the tops of the heads and shoulders. Then, there was only silence.
"Maybe they're hard of hearing," the brunette suggested sarcastically. Her ears were still ringing, and Star looked as if she hadn't heard a thing she had just said. "So, Tom, what's it like having three eyes?"
Instantly, the ground beneath them opened up, sending them down a seemingly bottomless hole that left them all gasping for air. Before they did reach the bottom, Tom flicked his wrist out, successfully holding them still in the air before slowly lowering them down to the ground safely.
"If it isn't, Tom," a throaty voice exclaimed from above, "and I see you've brought some friends. How nice!"
Four sets of eyes darted to a balcony where a well-dressed creature smirked a devilish smirk that could rival Janna's… Well, almost.
"Friend of yours?" she queried, already knowing the answer judging by the teenaged demon's furrowed brows.
"Not really," he muttered before shifting his full attention to the tall, hairy man looking down at them from the shadows. "Enyinnaya." A hand rested on his shoulder and he turned to see Brian giving him a thumbs up. "Don't lie. Did you fix the main fight tonight?"
A hardy chuckle shook the ground before the huge, demonic creature jumped down from his balcony, causing a small earthquake that broke the balance of his non-demon guests.
"Well, since you've come all the way down here…"
He paused, leaving the foursome to gape at his large size and expensive-looking, pinstriped suit. With his dark, slicked-back hair, he reminded Janna of a wannabe gangster from a movie… Of course, the sharpened teeth and lime green skin as well as the fact that he towered over them at what must have been twenty feet reminded her that this was far from one of the members of her hilariously bad movie collection.
"Why don't you fight me for the truth?" he finished, putting his scaly hands behind his back as he leaned down to look Tom in the eye.
"Name your game," he challenged in a bored tone, his hands resting on his hips.
"Chili cook-off/ bake-off... fight to death extravaganza."
Six pairs of eyes flew to the three-eyed demon.
"You're on."
Then, everything went completely and utterly insane.
The only child of the Diaz family slowly spun around in his chair—careful not to make himself dizzy—as his best friends—who he swears they are—Alfonzo and Ferguson discuss through webcam the pros and cons of a recently released video game Marco had completely forgotten about. He smirks absentmindedly as he remembers when it had been announced—just before Star had arrived on Earth. It was all he could think about besides Jackie Lynn Thomas before the magical princess began living across from him.
Speaking of the easygoing skater girl… Marco sent another text apologizing for canceling at such short notice while also urging the blonde to not come over to check on him. He released a shaky breath… He was never a fan of lying.
"Marco, are you listening?!"
"He's doing it again! Stop ignoring us!"
The spacious room was silent except for the heavy breathing of the exhausted chefs awaiting the last judge's critique. Janna playfully yawned at the sudden loss of exhilaration. It was hard to believe that just a little while ago, the intimidating demon Enyinnaya had accidentally put beans into his cake mix and a few spoonfuls of sugar into his chili. Tom, on the other hand, managed to create a supremely hot and spicy chili, but floundered at baking his cookies when Star "accidentally" zapped a narwhal into their kitchen… that almost ate Brian. Luckily for the receding-hairlined man, Janna was apparently quite talented at getting an animal to regurgitate an alive person. That sight alone almost made Tom completely forget about the cookies that had been burning in the oven.
Doing a once-over of her team, the brown-eyed troublemaker was glad she had her phone to take photographic evidence of this eventful night. To her left was Star—sans that baggy hoodie that contradicted her colorful lifestyle—attempting to pull cookie dough from her hair without disturbing the large bun that she had spun it into after Brian complained about the strands of her hair getting into his brownie mix. To her right was the tall, pale, and handsome demon who had forgone his jacket and tie long ago, leaving his collared shirt to be a victim to the sentient mixer of chocolate that ate one of Janna's sleeves. Beside him was his life coach… looking as if the life had been sucked right out of him. While she had been unconscious for a short while during the brawl over the last bag of sprinkles, she was pretty sure he still had his soul… Just not 100% sure.
"Uh, this is disgusting! Are you a bloody idiot? This isn't fully cooked!"
"Gordon Ramsay?" Janna muttered, peering around Tom to get a better look at the final judge who had left Enyinnaya cowering in his "Kiss the Demon" apron.
"And you," the British voice continued. "Let's have a taste of your dishes. Hopefully, I won't have to see any more of my dinner in the trash can."
She watched the monster version of Gordon Ramsay step up to Tom's table.
"Brownies. Adequate." Brian crossed his arms, turning away defiantly. "Cookies. Slightly burnt, but—… Hmm, surprising not terrible." Tom wiped away the sweat from his forehead with the bottom of what was left of the silk top hanging off his shoulders. "The cake... Is there alcohol in this?" Janna and Star tilted their heads to the side— the former innocently and the latter in bewilderment. "And finally, the chili. You too are equal so far so this will be what decides it."
The room fell silent as the participants—and the audience of random demons resembling a studio audience that Janna hadn't noticed until now—leaned forward to hear the results that would determine the winner.
"Eh."
The audience cheered, confetti exploded from the ceiling, and Tom's teammates crowded around him in a group hug.
"Alright." The gang turned their attention back to the old demon who threw his apron to the ground in a childish fit. "I fixed the fight."
"Oh, yeah," the magical princess mumbled, twisting in their for-some-reason-still-going-on group hug to look at Janna. "I forgot that's why we were doing this."
"But so what? Now you know what you already assumed," Enyinnaya continued, placing his chipped claws onto his hips. "I never said I would give you the money you lost."
"What about the fight to the death?"
All eyes jumped to the cool brunette copying the old demon's pose, her chocolate colored eyes daring him to pick the more fun option.
"Uhhh… Oh, yeah."
"And why did we even cook to begin with?"
"My daughter has a bake sale tomorrow at school, and I needed something for lunch tomorrow."
"Ah."
"Yeah, my wife works the late shift so—"
"So technically you owe us more for doing half the work."
"Ya know what?" the frazzled looking creature shouted, his sharp eyes giving off a dark red glow. "Let's end this."
Energy suddenly surged in the air, so strong that it choked up many of the room's inhabitants. Star readied her wand while Tom's face began to imitate that of the elder demon's.
"Daddy."
The room went cold.
"Buttercup," Enyinnaya gulped, looking up to the balcony above him to see a tiny girl glaring down at him.
"What did I tell you, Daddy? I'm trying to sleep."
Much to their surprise, the father looked downright terrified as a result of the innocent gaze the horned child pinned on the cowering man.
"I know, and I'm sorry—"
"Yawn," Janna said monotonously before waltzing up to the lanky man on his knees and plucking his wallet right out of his pocket. "Here." She handed Tom a wad of the demonic dollars before stuffing the rest of the otherworldly currency into her jacket pocket. "That cover it?"
Tom looked at a loss for words as did the rest of the spectators. Clearing his suddenly dry throat, he nodded.
"Cool." The wallet flew from her hand as she swung it back disinterestedly, allowing it to top the wrinkled apron currently soaking in spilled chili on the linoleum. "Let's head home. Star?"
The blonde grinned thankfully, looking worse for wear as she pulled out her dimensional scissors and led the way out of the dimension.
"Oh, I hope my dad got home okay."
"I'm sure he's fiiiine, Starrrr," Janna yawned—this time for real.
Just as the portal closed, a blond man with a misshapen beard fell through a large familiar hole in the ground.
"Care for a bake off?" a high-pitched voice questioned from the balcony.
Marco studied the bold, thief, "I guess?" friend standing beside his kinda, sorta, "it's complicated," demonic friend in his kitchen… Then again, maybe they were both demonic.
"This—... fits," he pointed out, absentmindedly rubbed the sleeping blonde's back as she leaned on him, "and I don't like it."
Janna and Tom shared a devious grin with each other while Brian cleared his throat behind them.
"Tom." Said demon turned his attention to the shorter man "Good job." A sticker saying "Almost there!" was placed firmly on the demon's torn up shirt.
"And you too," the life coach said in a soothingly slow tone, placing another sticker on the beanie-ed teen's sole, surviving sleeve. She moved her arm to get a better look. The words "I helped!" glittered before her in bright pink.
"Thanks," a silvery voice whispered beside her as a hand patted her head.
She looked up to see the demon staring down at her before a fire erupted around him and Brian. Seconds later, the fire was gone and so were the two men. However, the warmth the demon left was not.
"That reminds me. Janna, do you have my keys?"
Later that night, Janna pulled a large book from beneath her bed before flipping it open to the next barren page.
Moments later, the "I helped!" sticker populated the page. Pulling her phone out of her pocket, she made a mental note to print out the photos from that eventful night. A small smile rested on her face as she pulled the snug hat from her head. Her mouth formed an "O" when she noticed the "Almost there!" sticker on her black—Star forgot to change back the colors of their outfits.—beanie. Shrugging her shoulders, she gave the "I helped!" sticker a neighbor on the page before flopping herself up onto her bed and passing out to dream things that could now barely compare to what her life had become.
A/N: Hope you enjoyed it. Thanks for reading and reaching the end!
Also, Enyinnaya is not a real demon name as far as I know. It's just a name I stumbled upon that means "his father's friend." I'm sure you can guess why I chose that name… In addition, I wish I had more time to work Star's dad into the story more, but he's currently just there for some additional humor as well as a reason for Star to stay and not run back home to see what Marco's doing. He originally had a larger role, but you'd be reading this for hours if I added in the extra scenes I had in mind.
Thanks again!