Hello everyone and welcome to my stand alone story once upon a time known as Gotham Academy. To those of you that don't know, this was a one shot from my story always a star and hoodie. Originally just a oneshot, i kept coming back to it over and over as it became a mix of gravity falls, batman, harry potter and school drama. Based on the gotham acadmey comic (Great read, i recommend it if your looking for harry potter style hijinks in the batman universe) So i decided to give it its own story. So let me know what you think you new readers and my old readers have a new chapter for them waiting on the next page. I hope you enjoy, i own nothing

"Leave my loneliness unbroken! quit the bust above my door!
Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door!'
Quoth the raven, `Nevermore.'"

Star couldn't help but being bored despite her love for all things Edgar Allan Poe. Miss Lockheart was a good person but she was quite literally boring whenever reenacting any classical English literature. There was no tension, no quiet brooding voices. Just reading through it with none of the fun.

Star let our a dramatic sigh as she kept drawing her star spider butterfly creature.

As she began putting the finishing touches on the drawing she had spent the entire class drawing, a hair fell loose and dangled just in front of her eyes causing an unwanted distraction. She blew the strain out of her face, she couldn't help but follow the loose hair upward until a much more wanted distraction caught her eye.

Echo Creek was a massive metropolis that seemed impossibly huge and had unusually strange relationship with crime. While there was a good chunk of crime, it usually boiled down to several strange and powerful humans battling the superhero that defended the town, the Echo.

Of course Star wouldn't know anything about that. Echo Creek Academy was far away from the city, a privatized school across the river where only the best of the best (or the richest) kids came to get a great education. This naturally meant all sense of individuality was squashed and swept under the blue blazer, red tie and a black skirt/pants uniforms with those shiny loafers that were way too much shiny for Star's taste.

Most of the staff couldn't care less about what the students wore but Principal Skeeves was adamant about order which forced the teachers to punish those rare sparks of humanity who dared to stand out. Star defied them with a little butterfly pin she had hidden under her tie but even Star Butterfly did not have the courage to openly fight the stuffy system. Only one person could get away with such an act.

Her eyes landed on one Marco Diaz whose bright red hoodie jacket was wrapped over his uniform, a bright red lighthouse in a sea of blue.

Star was fascinated by the new student. Marco had arrived a few months prior under a wave of rumors and secrets. No matter who Star asked, each person had a different excuse why Marco had joined 2 weeks into the semester.

One stated the school had made a rare mistake and he was simply late to the party. Another had claimed Marco had to battle royale his way into the school and they hadn't planned on the competition running so long. One had go as far as to claim that Marco was the child of a supervillian and had faced a long court case to be legally allowed to enter the school.

Whatever the case, Star couldn't help but keep tabs on Marco. He was a quiet, not in the shy way but just not talkative. He kept to himself but found friends among the outcasts and most importantly, he was the roommate of Oskar.

Star smiled brightly as the miss Lockheart called upon Marco who easily answered a rather complex question about the representation of raven.

Marco was also absolutely brilliant. Perfect grades that he seemed to get with such little effort. These grades were the only way Marco was able to keep his red hoodie, a piece of clothing he seemed oddly attached to. One day Principal Skeeves had called the young man into his office to talk about this little quirk he refused to surrender. An hour had passed and to everyone's surprise, Marco was still wearing his beloved jacket as he made his way back to his dorm room.

Everyone tried to get Marco to reveal how exactly he had forced Skeeves to let him express his individuality. Marco always replied "I just did" Before walking off to his little hide out in a little niche in the library.

Star hadn't approached Marco yet. His status of new kid made him a popular subject right away. Add in the fact his strange arrival and his obsession with his jacket, he was probably deeply annoyed by the constant questions that he clearly did not want to answer.

Recently, however, the novelty of Marco's existence finally sunk into the population of the students daily life and he was finally able to slink into obscurity. Now was Star's chance.

As the bell rang, mentally freeing the students (If not physically) from the school, Star took a deep calming breath, reminding herself not to come on too strong in case Marco was shyer than he let on.

Star bounced her way Marco's desk, waiting patiently while Marco quietly put his stuff away. Star was surprised when Marco faced her, not a single trace of surprise evident in his face.

"Hello Miss Butterfly, how may I help you?" Marco said in a polite but still friendly tone.

If Star was surprised before, she was absolutely gobsmacked now. That was the most amount of words she had ever heard come out of his lips that wasn't related to a school question and he even knew her name. She was hardly called on in class and she waited to talk to him.

"umm...hi Marco! Just call me Star btw" she cringed internally despite the smile on her face. Star was so worried about closing off Marco that she hadn't expected to be thrown off herself. Star wondered for a moment how to approach him and decided the direct approach would work best.

"So Marco, would you like to hang out? You're new here and I figured I could show you some cool spots I know"

Marco peered at her quizzically and Star realized how stupid that sounded. He had been here for a whole 2 months. Everyone dropped every secret in effort to leech off his coolness. He must've known about all the spots, all the really pretty flowers and sunset views.

Marco shook his head "Sorry Star. I'm afraid I have something to do today." Star's face fell. She was so energetic that many people just couldn't keep up and often turned her down despite her best intentions. "But maybe tomorrow we can do something."

Star couldn't believe her ears. Not only had Marco agreed to hang out with her, he agreed to hang out with her willingly! Marco gave her a small smile that she had never seen before and Star felt her heart beat a bit faster.

Then he turned to leave and suddenly tomorrow seemed too far away. As he began inching away from her, Star quickly shoved her stuff into her backpack and chased after him.

"Are you hungry Marco? We can go get something to eat at the food court"

"Thank you but I'm afraid I'll have to pass"

"Umm how about the game room? I can kick your butt at pool!"

"I don't doubt that but I'm afraid I really can't."

"Did you want to go monster hunting tonight!?" The words echoed all around her, causing her to cover her mouth with her hands. Star was also suddenly was aware that she was the in middle of the grand hall and there were countless eyes staring directly at the pair but that wasn't why she was suddenly so nervous.

She had promised the girls that she wasn't going to mention anything to anyone about their secret night time hobbies but she was so determined to hang out with Marco it just came tumbling out.

And apparently it worked as Marco peered closely at her, his eyes questioning.

"Monster hunting?" He asked cautiously.

Star nodded shyly, shifting uncomfortably under Marco's intense gaze "My friends and I heard a rumor about some kind of bat creature thing that can be seen at the old clocktower the first Friday of every month. So I was thinking..."

"Don't" Marco cut her off, his eyes serious and full of concern "Don't go. Stay away from the clocktower"

Star opened her mouth to question him when she heard someone calling her name. She turned around to see Jackie and Janna making their way towards her which was the last thing she wanted. She turned to finish up the warning only to find Marco nowhere in sight.

Star couldn't stop the "Huh" from escaping her lips as the girls caught up.

"Hey Star, whatcha doing?" Janna asked

"Umm...I was talking to someone" Star muttered quietly, her eyes still scanning for Marco but unable to spot his red jacket in the sea of blue.

"Okay, cool. Anyway we're going to go over the plan for tonight, come on!" Jackie whispered, pulling Star's sleeve to lead her to their dorm room.

For a moment Star wanted to cancel the adventure. Marco's warning seemed dire and serious, so much that Star felt like heed his warning was the right choice. But as Star stared into her friends eager eyes, she knew she couldn't cancel it. Nothing ever happened in this school. It was just a little time killer, a search that wouldn't actually find anything. Would could possibly go wrong?

"Many things" Star muttered to herself upon seeing the actual condition of the clocktower.

It was midnight and the clocktower stretched high above Star's sight. It was old, having been on the island far longer than anything. The color of the wood that the clocktower was composed of had long since faded away and in some places, cracked under the weight of age and weather. Each passing wind made the tower creak in a harsh groan and Star could swear she could see the tower sway back and forth in the wind ever so slightly.

Jackie and Janna paid no attention to any of this and happily made their way inside, ignoring the caution tape as they pushed open the anicent door.

Star was tempted to just leave before the tower just decided to collapse on them or worse, a prefect caught them out at night wearing a beanie, a shell necklace and Star's own devil horn headband.

But the excited gasps of the girls drew Star in and her thirst for adventure was unquenchable.

"It's a big island" Star reasoned "And this is far from any school building. I'm sure it'll be fine."

Star entered the tower, years of decay wafting through the air and assaulting her nose. Despite the pitch darkness outside, the moon's rays shone through the various cracks and holes in the building, giving Star enough light to avoid tripping over the scattered debris and dust.

No one had been in here for years, clear by the two sets of footprints freshly made by the girls ahead of her that were surrounded by dust. Star glanced around, waiting for the quiet sounds of gears grinding against each other but all she heard was giggling of Jackie and Janna echoing far above her.

Star began climbing the spiral staircase, careful to avoid the occasional hole caused by a broken step. "This a real work out" Star told herself as she climbed higher and higher, the wear and tear of the building becoming more visibly prominent the more she gained on her friends.

Star reached a door left ajar. She was a little worried that the constant stream of laughter her friends had been supplying was suddenly cut off. Star knew Janna was a big wuss, so if something happened, she would have been screaming her head off.

Still, something wasn't right here but Star couldn't figure it out. This whole tower was giving off a very strange vibe but even if she wanted to leave, Star couldn't leave with her two friends.

She entered the room with a held breath but released it with a sigh when she spotted the girls in the middle of what appeared to be a living quarters, cell phones drawn and bathing the room in a dim light. Star wanted to know who in their right mind would live in a clocktower but that was a question best asked back in the dorm room.

"Hey girls, I think it's time we head back. It is getting..." Star's eyes took in the sight of large, claw like marks that had been craved into the walls. Not just the walls Star realized but the entire room. The bed had been torn to shreds, claw marks graced every inch of the room, even the ceiling. An iron pot had been viciously chewed on. And this room seemed like someone had been in here, recently as there was no trace of dust anywhere.

Star wanted to cry out to them to get the hell out but before a single murmur could let out, she heard a sound. A sound she knew the others had heard too.

It was a deep growl, filled with the sounds of mouth full of saliva and the grinding of sharp, menacing fangs against one another. She could fear the peeling of wood as claws scrapped it off from where ever it was embedded in.

A thud echoed behind them, shaking the tower subtly and causing the wood to groan. The girls glanced at each other and came to the silent agreement to all look at once. They turned slowly, eyes on the ground in hopes that perhaps it was just their imaginations at work. But as their saw a thick, muscular pair of legs with webbed feet and razor sharp claws piercing the wooden floor, they knew it to be real.

Star was the first to take in the full sight of this creature. Despite the sounds it was making, it was only a head higher than the girls. That still didn't stop the scary look of said creature.

Its skin was a light brown color, oddly muscular. While it was no bigger than the average teenage boy, it was not human. It had two bat-like wings with claws. Its face was some sort of hybrid of man and wolf with two large pointed ears atop its head. It twisted its head curiously at the girls before bearing its fangs threateningly.

Star couldn't breath. Star couldn't think. Star briefly wondered if she was going to do as the creature took a step closer to her.

The creature was just a few inches away, fangs still bared and its brown eyes staring directly at her, hunger in its irises. Star had said only one word, a prayer more than an actual belief "Help"

Suddenly, a bright light flooded into the room along with a pair of screaming voices. The bat whirled around, its wing knocking the girls off their feet as it snarled at the interlopers. Whoever it was had no fear because they just ran straight at the beast with a bright light. The creature reared backwards before launching into the air, crashing through the ceiling and climbing higher into the clocktower.

Star tried to get her bearings as her saviors began helping Jackie and Janna to their feet. A hand appeared before Star and she grabbed it and tightly held on to it, incredibly happy to still be in one peace. AS Star dusted off herself and checked to make sure she was already, she caught the sight of a red piece of clothing out of the corner of her eye.

She looked up and found herself staring right into Marco's eyes. His scowl told her he wasn't happy with her but she couldn't care as she embraced him in a tight hug. She could feel him tense under her touch and his voice came out a little shaky "S-Star? You can let go." Star refused and instead hugged him tighter.

"We got to go now" A second, younger voice called the group. Star finally let go and turned to her second savior, one she was surprised at. Dipper Pines was about 2 years younger than Star. While she knew nothing about him aside that his great uncle worked at the school, his fanatic obsession with the paranormal (One that only increased upon finding a red book with a hand on it) and that his twin sister Mabel was a kindred spirit to Star, she was surprised that he was helping Marco.

Marco nodded grimly "We'll just hope he decides to stay inside the tower for now. We can fix up the damage later."

Dipper nodded but the girls couldn't believe what they were hearing.

"What a minute dude" Jackie cut in "You knew about this creature and you decided not tell anyone!"

"We could've died Marco!" Janna cried out to him while simultaneously getting closer. Marco took a step back, remembering when Janna had taken his dorm keys out of his pocket.

"That doesn't matter right now!" Marco shouted, stunning everyone "We need to go now before he decides to come back!"

A thud echoed just beyond the ceiling. Star could hear it cracking under the weight of the creature as it began to pace back and forth.

"Now, very quietly" Dipper whispered, motioning to everyone.

Star crept through the room as quietly as she could but her foot landed on a piece of wood too far gone to support her weight. The floor cracked under her weight and she found herself screaming, falling towards the endless darkness below.

The creature howled angrily as it crashed through the ceiling, blindly lunging at the group. Star opened her eyes to find herself hovering in place, swinging back and forth. She glimpsed upwards to find Marco holding tightly to her arm.

"Don't worry Star I got you!" Star couldn't help but smile. Then the creature reminded them of its existence.

It let out a loud shriek that rocked the tower violent before lunging straight towards Marco. Marco glared at the beast but there was nothing he could do to defend himself.

Dipper rushed towards the best, electricity sparking from a taser he held in his hand. The creature reared back in pain before swiping at the boy. Dipper let out a yell and ducked under the attack, just in time for Jackie and Janna to toss a crate directly into the creatures face. The creaute snarled once more before swiping the second projectile from the air.

"Oh man, that's not fair! Yours hit it" "Move Janna!"

The creaure swiped wildly at Dipper and the girls, backing them into a corner before looking eyes upon Marco who was desperately trying to lift Star, something he could've done if he had more time but time was about to run out.

The creature broke into a run, far too quickly for anyone to stop it. Star was so angry at being useless. She could fight off anyone stupid enough to attack her but here she was hanging like some useless bait.

An idea formed in her head and she called out to Marco "SWING ME!" Marco looked at her, confusion all over his face but she just beamed back at him, hoping he would trust her.

Marco wasn't sure what Star had in mind but the creature was getting closer and he had no other plan. So with all his strength Marco rocked Star back and forth, building momentum as the creature inched closer and closer.

"Now right at the thing!" Star shouted.

Marco nodded in agreement and with one last might swing, launched Star towards the creature. Star's foot connected with the beast's snout, knocking it back as Star landed safely on the ground. The creature flailed wildly before Dipper jabbed it with his taser one last time. The creature snarled weakly before succumbing to the attack.

The group took a deep breath. The beast groaned in its sleep but seemed a lot less beastly each moment passed. The group watched in quite awe as the beast changed into a face Star was very familiar.

"Oskar" Star muttered while the boy's groaned in pain.

"Oskar...is a bat?" Jackie muttered, disbelieving the sight before.

"Not really. He was cursed by someone" Dipper explained "he came to me a few months ago begging that I help him. I tried everything I could to stop him but no matter what he kept escaping."

"That's when Dipper came to me and asked me for help" Marco went on "I figured if we locked him in the clock tower, we could lock the door and he would have enough space to fly so he wouldn't get wild trying to escape from a cramped space."

"So this is why you told me not to come in here?" Star muttered outloud.

Jackie and Janna glared at their roommate but they also couldn't be too angry about this new piece of info. No doubt they would've just shrugged off Star's warning.

Marco nodded "We're close to a cure but we still are missing the identity of the witch that cursed him."

Star peered questioningly at Marco "Witch?"

Dipper took over for Marco "For this curse to keep activating, my book says a witch has to be nearby. Her presence triggers the curse. So she has to be on the island."

"What if it is a dude and not a girl?" Janna asked haughtily "why does it have to be a witch and not like a warlock?"

"Because males can't be warlocks. Guys don't have the magic gene in them."

Jackie and Janna opened their mouth for more questions but Marco rose his hand "I know you are all curious, but I remind you it is 2 in the morning and we still need to sneak back into the dorms with Mr. sunshine down here."

Oskar let out another groan in case anyone had forgotten about him.

Quietly nodding, the group traveled as one down the stairs while Marco was in charge of carrying Oskar back to their room.

Star felt like she wanted to say a million things but nothing seemed enough. Marco did just save her life and while she returned the favor, she didn't feel like she did much.

"You don't have to apologize" Marco spoke up "You had no idea and I was being vague."

"Still" Star admitted "I should've listened to you. I"m sorry for causing you so much trouble."

Marco stared at her before shrugging his shoulders "No trouble Star, Thanks for the save"

Star rose her eyebrow, confused at his thanks "I didn't do anything. You're the one who caught me as I fell."

"And you protected us from Oskar before he could harm anyone" Marco countered "Seems like a save to me"

Star nodded in agreement and the pair fell into an awkward silence.

Finally Marco spoke up upon reaching the bottom of the staircase "Since tonight has been very eventful, I'd like to request that when we hang out today, we not have an adventure like this so soon"

Star looked at him like he was mad "We...hang out?"

"Yes, I believe you wanted to hang out yesterday. I couldn't because I had to watch Oskar. But since I promised you we hang out tomorrow and tomorrow is now today, today we are hanging out. Right?"

Star nodded, her happiness spilling over "You know it!"

Marco gave her the biggest smile she had ever seen and she couldn't stop from flushing if she tried "Cool."

Star returned the smile and missed how red Marco got upon seeing it "Cool"