Author's note: I originally posted this last Sunday (I thought Wholesome Week began that day. Whoops), and after getting a bit of feedback commenting on how short it was I took another look and agreed. So I went back to the drawing board, added in a middle section I had originally cut, and took the opportunity to change a few words here, tighten up some portions and add in an even better (and far more low key) meta joke. The result is almost twice as long as the original, with a lot more stuff in it that I personally enjoy. Long story short, consider this to be a sort of Starcoversary Director's Cut!
Wholesome Week Special: Starcoversary
"Marrrrco...wake up Marco!" Marco yawned and stretched, rubbing his eyes to try and clear all the sleep out of them. Once again, he and Star had fallen asleep on the couch, snuggled up together while watching one of their favorite movies.
"Marcoooo, guess what day it is!" Star stood in the living room doorway, bursting with excitement and holding an enormous tray of breakfast in her hands. Marco knew perfectly well what day it was, but figured there was no harm in teasing her a little bit.
"I dunno...is it Tuesday?"
"It's actually a Thursday, but that's not what I meant!"
"Wait...wasn't this the day we promised my parents we'd take them back to Mewni?"
Star pouted. "Marco Diaz, if you've forgotten what's special about today after I spent hours making breakfast for us, I swear I will turn you into a frog!" Marco burst out laughing, Star's expression was just too adorable to resist. He got up from the couch and walked over to the doorway, greeting his girlfriend with a quick kiss on her cheek. "Star...you know I would never forget today is our anniversary."
Star blushed and set the tray down on the coffee table. "Yep! Happy four year Starcoversary, Marco!"
"Starcoversary? Star, I'll know what you're talking about if you just say it's our anniversary!"
"Well yeah, but I don't want to get it mixed up with my Earthversary or my Jannaversary or my Jackieversary!" She pulled up the calendar on her phone and showed it to him. Sure enough, the day she had come to Earth plus the days she had started talking to her two best friends were highlighted and labeled just as she had said.
Marco chuckled a little. Star had grown up to become a stunningly beautiful young woman. Blue eyes that seemed to permanently sparkle with joy, with blonde hair that flowed down her back almost to her waist and a knockout (yet still very huggable) figure, but in her heart she was still the same old Star.
The couple sat down together at the coffee table to enjoy their meal. When she had first arrived on Earth, Star had been the sort of person who was likely to burn the house down making a cup of cocoa. But now (with a lot of learning from Marco's mom), she had turned into a surprisingly talented cook. She had prepared most of their favorite breakfast foods, and Marco and Star savored every dish as they shared bites with each other and reminisced about their time together up till now. There had been ups and downs, as well as their fair share of fights, but they both could agree that these had been the happiest years of their lives.
"So Marco, have anything special planned for today?" Marco grinned, then pulled two pieces of paper out of his pocket.
"Not really, I figured we'd take these tickets to Disneyland and just...roll with it!"
Star squealed with excitement, they'd been talking about a Disneyland trip for months! "AHH! Thank you Marco, this is going to be the BEST DAY EVER! Let's go, let's go, let's go!" The pair quickly cleared up their dishes, and Star ran upstairs to get dressed and head out for the day. Once he was sure that she was gone, Marco quickly pulled out his phone and dialed a number. He paced back and forth as the phone rang, hoping that Star wouldn't find an outfit she liked for another few minutes. The other end finally picked up.
"Tom," Marco whispered frantically. "Do you have it?"
"Just picked it up today, Diaz, I'll have it when we meet up with you guys later!"
"Awesome, I owe you big time!" Marco had just managed to slip his phone back into his pocket when Star appeared at the top of the staircase ready to head out. She had decided to go with a vintage piece that day, a polka-dotted sundress that looked to have come straight out of an old Beach Boys video. "Marcooooo, hurry up! You've got to get ready!"
"Sorry, I just got a phone call I had to take. I'll be ready in just a few!"
Marco smiled to himself. Just you wait, Star...you have no idea just how amazing this day will turn out to be.
Despite there being less traffic than normal, it was still about an hour's drive up the coast to their destination. Star couldn't take her eyes off of Marco for a single second, some days it still surprised her just how handsome he had turned out to be. The chocolate brown eyes that were perfectly matched to his skin tone and hair...his slim, yet muscular build...the warmth of his smile...and on top of that he was the kindest, most caring person she knew. How on earth did I get so lucky?, she thought to herself. Despite how much he had grown up he was still very much her 'safe kid' though, and Star thought back to when they were both sixteen and the unavoidable question of...intimacy had come up. She giggled a little, remembering how his face had turned almost as red as his sweatshirt as he tried explaining to Star just what would happen and what it could lead to. Thankfully they had both decided that neither one of them was ready to take that next step; just kissing would prove to be more than enough in the meantime.
They had finally arrived. It took only a few minutes for them to find a parking spot, and a short tram ride later they were finally at the main gate. Once the park was finally visible Star's jaw dropped, "It's a magical place, right here on Earth..." she whispered in awe. Marco smiled at her, "Just wait until we're inside, it gets even better!" They decided to start out at California Adventure, and luckily enough found a line to get inside that wasn't completely nuts.
As soon as they were through the gate, Star saw one of the characters from her favorite cartoon and started excitedly tugging on Marco's sweatshirt. "Marco! Marco, look it's Daron, from Daron vs the Forces of Evil! I have to get a picture with her, come on!" Star grabbed Marco's arm and pulled him towards the line, the two of them getting a picture with the character after a short wait. Star sighed happily as they walked away with their photo, "I hope her and Bobby get together at the end of season 2, they're just too adorable together!" Marco nodded in agreement, "I hope they do as well, the showrunners have been teasing the whole fandom about whether or not Dobby will be a thing for far too long. My guess is, it's only a matter of time!" Star clapped her hands with delight. "Good! So...what's our first stop for the day going to be?" They quickly scanned their park map, deciding that the Tower of Terror seemed like a good start and heading off in that direction hand in hand.
Star was not prepared for how intense Tower of Terror turned out to be. After the first drop, she had been convinced that they were going to plummet directly into the earth, and spent the remainder of the ride clinging to Marco's arm and burying her face in his chest. Marco held her tightly until the ride was over. She was still shaking even after they had gotten off the ride, so Marco quickly picked her up and carried her to the nearest bench.
"It's alright Star...I've got you. We're on the ground now safe and sound, just breathe. In...and out." Marco had sat down next to Star with his hands on her shoulders, trying to help her as best as he could.
"I'm sorry...we should have started out with something less intense." Star had finally stopped shaking, and her breathing was becoming more even with each moment. "Marco, let's go again."
Marco's eyebrows shot up. "Star...it's okay. We can go on something else if you'd like." Star looked up, and Marco could see the old warrior-princess gleam in her eyes. "Marco. I want to try it again." Marco knew there would be no talking her out of it at this point, so he helped her to her feet and they ran to get back in the line for a second time. This time, Star was ready for the drop and she was laughing and cheering the entire ride. Marco hugged her tightly after they were done the second time. He had always admired Star's bravery and never-give-up attitude, but he was especially proud of her right now. As long as they were together, there was nothing they couldn't do.
Still on an adrenaline rush from Tower of Terror, Marco and Star decided that their next stop should be California Screamin', the huge roller coaster at the back of the park. Star was practically pulling Marco along in her excitement to get there, but about halfway to the entrance Marco suddenly stopped.
"Marco, what're you doing? We've got to go, the line is going to be insane!"
Marco grinned at her. "Welllll, we could go there, but then we might miss your anniversary surprise!"
Star's eyes grew wide, "Oooooo, I LOVE surprises! What is it, what is it, what is it?!"
Marco's grin grew even wider, "You'll just have to wait to find out, but it should be here in just a couple of minutes!" Star was bouncing up and down with excitement when a pair of hands suddenly covered her eyes from behind. "Guess who?!"
"JACKIE!?" Star quickly turned around to see Jackie standing behind her, with Janna and Tom right by her side. Star grabbed Jackie, pulling her in for a bone crushing hug. "Ohmigosh, what're you guys doing here!?"
"Marco invited us, happy anniversary you guys!"
Star turned back to Marco, now awkwardly scratching the back of his neck. "Marco, was this your big anniversary surprise?"
"Well...I know that one of your favorite things about Earth is the friends you've made. I figured that you'd want them here to celebrate with us!"
"Of course I do! But isn't this supposed to be a special day, just the two of us?"
"Don't worry, we're not going to stick around all day!" Tom said, "We're just gonna be around for a little bit, at least until I can give Marco the - HMMMPH!" Tom doubled over in pain, Janna had elbowed him sharply in the stomach before he accidentally revealed Marco's plan for later.
"What he meant to say is that we know it's your day, and while we want to celebrate it with you, we'll make ourselves scarce if you guys decide you want some...alone time.", Janna said with a sly wink.
Marco and Star looked at each other, turning an identical shade of red. They knew perfectly well what Janna was implying by alone time. While they had promised each other they would wait...they were still two eighteen-year-olds very much in love, and the thought had crossed both of their minds. Neither of them was going to bring it up though, it wasn't exactly the sort of thing that was discussed between friends.
Star finally broke the silence, kissing Marco on the cheek. "I love it, thank you Marco!" She turned back to her friends. "And thank you all for being here, it means the world to me!" Star pulled her friends in for a tight group hug, once that was done all that was left was deciding where to go first.
"Sooooo...roller coaster?" Everyone agreed, roller coaster it was.
"WOOOOOOOO!" The group could barely keep up with Star. Once their ride on the coaster had finished, she had bounded off at top speed and had barely slowed down since then.
"Star...wait up...where...are we going next?" Marco called after her, almost out of breath. Star turned back, and despite his exhaustion Marco couldn't help but smile at the unabashed excitement on her face. She stopped, realizing that she had been too caught up in the moment to actually think about what she wanted to do next.
"Ummm...anyone have any ideas?"
"Well," Jackie chimed in, "I saw some really cute stuff in that shop we just walked past! Why don't Star, Janna and I do a little shopping while the guys take a breather?"
"Oooh, shopping sounds perfect!", Star cheered, "Will you be alright just you and Tom for a while, Marco?"
Marco nodded, still out of breath. "Yeah...we'll be alright. You guys go have fun, we'll probably grab something to eat and meet up with you later!" With Janna on one arm and Jackie on the other, Star practically skipped off towards the shop in question.
As soon as she was gone, Marco quickly looked around and nudged Tom in the side.
"Tom!" He whispered, "Do you have it?"
"I told you I'd have it, it's right here!" The demon pulled a small box out of his backpack and handed it to Marco, who opened it up to see inside for himself. His eyes lit up, it was exactly as he had hoped it would look. "It's perfect, she's going to love it! I owe you big for helping me out with this, Tom. I've got to hand it to you, you've really come a long way from when you first heard about me and Star dating." Marco shut the box and quickly tied it off with a red ribbon, putting into the pocket of his jeans for safe keeping.
Tom nodded, remembering back to when the news had first gotten to him. "Hey! I told you I was sorry about that, I just...overreacted a little bit."
Marco chuckled, "That's...one way of putting it. I'm pretty sure you would have actually liquified my organs had Star not been there...that was certainly a day to remember!" Marco and Tom looked at each other and burst out laughing. They didn't remember too many details of the fight between Tom and Star, only that it had resulted with both of them in the hospital and their parents ended up pushing their beds together until they could talk things out. It took a moment, but eventually they were both able to pull themselves upright and calm down a little bit.
"Seriously though...I'm really happy for you guys." Tom said, looking fondly in the direction the girls had gone. "I want her to be happy, and I know she has that with you. There'll always be a part that wishes it was me, but...things with me and J have never been better, and I wouldn't trade that for anything!"
"I'm glad to hear that! Star and I were really rooting for the two of you!" Marco said, smiling. "And...thanks, that means a lot coming from you. I know me and Star wasn't easy for you to deal with in the beginning." Checking to make sure the others weren't around to see, Marco and Tom shared a quick hug and then gathered up their stuff, setting off to find snacks and meet back with the girls.
"Ooooh, how about the little Mickeys?" Jackie, Janna and Star were in heaven. It felt like ages since they had last had a day out just the three of them and they were going to make the most of every minute. Jackie and Janna had picked out matching bracelets for the three of them, and now Star was looking at different earrings to try and find a new pair. She looked at the Mickey pair that Janna had recommended, and after weighing them against the pair of Tinkerbells she had been looking at decided that they were perfect. Satisfied with what they had found, the girls headed over to the register to pay for their things.
"Can you guys believe Marco and I have been together for four years now?" Star sighed happily as they walked off with their purchases. "And I'm at Disneyland, with you guys...I don't think I could possibly be any happier than I am right now!" Jackie and Janna glanced at each other and started giggling. Star looked back at them in confusion.
"What's so funny? What did I say?" Jackie and Janna could barely contain themselves now.
"Oh...nothing," Jackie said with a smirk, "It's just..."
"...we heard that Marco had a plan to make sure this was a day you would never forget!" Janna finished her friend's sentence, perfectly matching the look on Jackie's face.
"What?! Come on guys, you've gotta tell me!" The two of them were almost doubled over giggling now. Luckily, Tom and Marco showed up half a minute later, giving them an easy way to change the conversation. Star pouted. She still wanted to know what they were talking about, but she figured at least she would find out before the end of the night. Marco Diaz...just what do you have planned?
The rest of the day went by like a whirlwind. Jackie, Janna and Tom had gone home after a few hours, and after saying their goodbyes Marco and Star proceeded to go on everything from the Haunted Mansion to the Matterhorn, barely leaving each other's side the whole time. Somehow, four years of steady dating hadn't made them any less crazy about each other. If anything, they were more inseparable now than they ever were before. The sun was setting now, so Marco and Star decided they should find a place to eat dinner. They chose a nice looking restaurant near the middle of the park, even managing to score a table on the patio area where they could watch the fireworks show that would be starting soon.
Without even trying, Marco and Star timed their meal perfectly, finishing up dessert just as the show was set to begin. Star pulled her chair around the table to sit down right beside her boyfriend, situating herself so that her head was resting comfortably on his shoulder.
"Can you believe it's already been four years, Marco? It seems like only yesterday I was getting shipped off to Earth by my mom and dad, where does the time go?"
"I can hardly believe it myself, we're already beating the odds compared to most relationships between people our age!"
Star giggled and playfully punched Marco on the arm. "Marco, we literally had to cross dimensions of time and space to even meet each other...I'm pretty sure we exist outside of the odds!" She sighed happily, the show had just started and she had found herself awestruck by the spectacle of lights and colors in the sky.
"This day was perfect, Marco. Thank you...thank you for the best anniversary gift ever." Marco smiled to himself, he had been waiting all day for the right moment and Star had all but placed it in his lap. "Actually, Star...this isn't my anniversary gift to you."
Star turned to Marco, tilting her head in confusion. "Huh? No offense Marco...but if that wasn't your gift, I don't know what you have that could possibly top it!" Marco quickly fished into his pocket, pulling out a small box tied up with a red ribbon. "Now, before you open this...I think you should know that it comes with a question that you have to answer."
Star was even more confused than before, furrowing her brow as she tried to think of what Marco could have possibly gotten her. He handed her the box, and she immediately started working on untying the ribbon to get it open. She was so focused on getting it open that she didn't even notice Marco slide off of his chair, dropping down to one knee before her. Star finally managed to get the ribbon undone, gingerly lifting the lid off of the box to see what was inside. She gasped, nearly dropping the box onto the table when she saw what was inside.
It was a ring. The golden band was simple, yet elegant. The color of it matched the star at the center of her wand perfectly, the ruby at the top of the ring was as red as the light of the blood moon, and the stone was cut in the shape of a heart to match the marks on her cheeks. She clasped her hand over her mouth in surprise, turning to Marco as tears of joy welled up in her eyes and her face broke into the biggest smile she had ever felt. "Well...I told you this gift came with a question, so here it is: Star Butterfly, will you marry me?"
Star was dumbstruck, completely overwhelmed with happiness, but without hesitation she started frantically nodding her head in agreement. A moment later she finally found her words again. "Yes! Yes Marco, I will! Of course I'll marry you, I love you Marco!" He stood up, taking the ring from its box and motioning for her to stand up as well. Cradling her left hand in both of his, he gently slipped the ring onto her finger and kissed her hand. "I love you too, Star!" Star threw her arms tightly around Marco, pulling him in for what would be the biggest kiss they had ever shared up till now. Their fellow diners and the serving staff broke out into applause, wolf-whistling and yelling out their congratulations. But to Marco and Star, everyone else might as well have been in a different dimension. For them, there was only here and now and each other.
They finally separated from each other and sat back down to enjoy the rest of the show. When it was over, the couple made quick calls to both sets of parents as well as their friends to share the good news with them. After they were done on the phone, Star grabbed her glass of lemonade and offered a toast to Marco. "To the best Starcoversary ever!" Marco smiled and returned the toast. "To every single Starcoversary, for the rest of our lives!"
Marco and Star gathered their things, picked up a couple of last minute souvenirs and then headed out to the tram that would take them back to their car. Star was a little bit sleepy and decided to cuddle right up to Marco on the way back, committing the day's events to memory so she wouldn't forget a single moment.
What she had told Marco at the beginning of the day turned out to be correct. This had been the best day ever. But somehow...she figured tomorrow would be even better.
Author's note: HAPPY WHOLESOME WEEK EVERYBODAHHHH! (maybe taking it a little too seriously? But I think we all need this to clean off the stench of hiatus). Shoutout to SnowyZoe (don't know your FNN name) for an early readthrough/feedback.
This was a lot of fun to write. Seriously, going from being stuck at the point of "How do I make sure Marco lives after dropping him off a castle suspended miles above the Earth?" to something purely fluffy and "THEY'RE GONNA GET MARRIED!" just made me really goddamn happy. Hope you enjoy this as much as I did!
-fatal
P.S. In an AU where Daron and Bobby are the names of our two favorite dorks instead of Star and Marco, Dobby would be the only acceptable ship name for the two of them