Part one: the morning
The Diaz house was unusually quiet for a Saturday morning. The weekend had just begun and there were no unusual additions to the building or surprise visits from some weird inter-dimensional creatures. Nope. Nobody had even woken up yet, that was until a very familiar sound filled the silent halls. It was Marco's 'space unicorn' ringtone. Marco rolled over, still half asleep, reaching for his bedside table, not fully realizing what was going on until he saw the caller I.D on the screen of his phone. Jackie was calling. He didn't have time to question why she was calling so early in the morning as he quickly answered the call, fearing and might hang up before he got the chance.
'Hey Jackie, what's up?' He asked whilst desperately not trying to sound dazed. 'Hey Marco! Sorry I called so early...I was... Kinda wondering if you'd want to hang out for a little while later, since we didn't get all that much time together last night and all.' Marco, who all of a sudden was wide awake, took no time at all to respond. 'Yeah, sure thing! What were you planning on?' He heard a slight chuckle coming from the other side. 'it'll be a surprise. I'll head over there soon.' He could almost feel her smiling through the phone, and couldn't help but smile back . 'Well alright, I'll see you when you get here.' And the call was over. He kinda wished he knew exactly what Jackie was planning so he knew how to get ready.
He decided to go get some breakfast before worrying too much about that, but as soon as he left his room, Star also stepped out into the hallway. She definitely looked better than when she had gone to sleep that night, but she still wasn't quite herself. 'Morning Star.' He spoke softly as they walked towards each other. 'Are you... Uh... Feeling alright today?' She yawned loudly, stretching her arms cartoonishly above her head. 'Yeah, I'm okay, I still feel a little tired... And worried.' They both reached the kitchen and began preparing breakfast for themselves. 'I know, let's just hope Ludo takes his time figuring out how to use that book.' Star nodded silently. 'We should start looking for him as soon as we can.' She was right, they had to, it was their best chance at finding the book before any thing went wrong.
'Is something wrong Marco?' She was looking at him, confused at why he looked so sad all of a sudden. 'Oh no, not really... Well...kinda. Jackie wanted to hang out today, so I've gotta cancel with her.' Star scratched her head with guilt. 'Well, I mean we could always go looking some other time I guess.' But Marco shook his head. 'Or I could just reschedule, Jackie is really understanding, so I'm sure she wouldn't mind.' Star was biting her lip. 'Or you could have her come with us!' She blurted out seemingly against her own will. 'Well couldn't that be dangerous? after all she's only been in another dimension once, and that didn't go all too well.' Star shrugged her shoulders. 'Well alright, I thought you wanted to spend time with her but...' Marco quickly interrupted her. 'Alright fine! I'll ask her to come. She should be here soon.'
With that he finished his breakfast and went back upstairs, leaving Star alone in the kitchen. She was starting to regret suggesting Jackie coming along. She remembered her reaction from the night before to seeing Marco and Jackie together and began to worry about what she might if they were directly in front of her, she started trying to think of excuses. 'If we do find Ludo, she could be hurt really badly.' 'Would she be able to fight if she was in trouble?' 'What if she were to get separated from us?' But before she could think of something convincing enough for Marco, the doorbell rang.