This dimensional travel thing was a little disorienting, if Marco was being honest. There wasn't a clear sense of time that went with their destinations. No clocks, no visible sun or stars, no clear or measurable way to tell how long they had been gone.

The Bounce Lounge was dark, lit only by the club lights and glowsticks. It felt like they had only been at the club for thirty minutes, but it wasn't clear if time was even moving at the same pace on Earth as things did here. No way to be sure, and normally, he wouldn't care. But Star had school tomorrow.

Well, they both did, but his attendance mattered far less than hers. She had respectability and the pressure of her parents and blah blah blah to keep up with, and he could tell by the strained look in her eyes when she found him that she was already growing tired.

He had decided to rest at the edge of one of the clouds, looking at the proverbial death trap that was below. It was pretty clear you were fucked for good if you danced off the edge of the impossible floating terrace. He couldn't decide if the display was amusing or mortifying. Mewni, Star had mentioned, was a little more intense than Earth - the ivory bones of long-dead dancers in the spiked cavern below was evidence enough of that.

What a way to go, he mused, thinking of the irony of trying to have a night out to celebrate and comically dropping dead.

"Oh, there you are."

It was Star, clearly, her voice a soft sigh of comfort over the oppressive false lights and smell of sweat and ethanol. And if that hadn't been a giveaway, she called his name a moment later; the only other person who knew his name here probably had a lot more colorful words for him in mind.

"Marco," Star clicked her tongue at his shoulder, looking over the edge and his legs dangling over the side. "That's really dangerous, you know. People have died here."

"I can see that, Princess," he replied, the smile in his voice obvious. "They don't clean up the remains, unless that's part of the vibe they're going for," he pointed over at a skeleton giving them a thumbs-up, and Star made a retching sound that was totally unrefined.

Marco looked up at her properly to see she was smiling, too, that softness returned to her cream-colored skin. She was endlessly interesting, continuing to take him by surprise.

"Where's PH?" He said without thinking, and he regretted asking it almost immediately. The easy grin slid right off her face, replaced by an irritated scowl as she put a hand at her hip and directed her attention at her purse.

She dug for a moment and reclaimed the scissors from earlier, keeping her attention on the blade and trying to forget the mesmerizing way he looked back in her room after handing those same scissors back to her.

"She's getting some guys number," Star paused to roll her eyes, which Marco found amusing. "And then we're going to the Amethyst Arcade. But you really shouldn't have treated her like that, you know? I don't think she cares for the nickname."

Marco stretched his arms over his head and stood up, placing a fist over his heart. "Oh, no, her feelings were hurt. Whatever shall we do?"

That earned him a warning look from Star, whose expression hardened considerably. "Seriously. That's not funny, Marco."

He met her stare just as strongly. "I wasn't trying to be funny. She's got an attitude problem."

That made Star snort, and Marco felt himself pink a little around the nose.

"Yeah," she commented. "Like you're one to talk about attitude."

He crossed his arms and looked away, pretending to be offended. "Oh, Princess, you injure me with your words."

"Marco," she whined when she spotted a floating streak of blue come nearer. Star moved a little closer so she could speak more quietly, and he peeked through one eye at her pretty bluebell ones, staring up at him, pleading.

"Please, just be a little nicer to her? She's my friend, and this night is supposed to her… what did you call it, 'big blow out'? I want you to get along. Please?"

Marco felt the corner of his mouth twitch, but he only offered a sigh and a curt not. He couldn't go and give her the satisfaction of knowing he would do damn near anything she asked if she was going to bore into his soul with those doe-eyes, blue and sparkling. He definitely wasn't blushing. Nope. Definitely not.

The trio united a moment later, and urged by Star, made half-hearted apologies. Marco could hardly hear Pony Head over the pounding bass, but he really didn't care what she said anyways. Star seemed satisfied, and with a blinding smile, she snipped a portal and gestured for them to follow.

"Ah, here we go," Star walked out of the swirling light, shaking off the feeling of viscus liquid on her. Portal hopping was a strange experience, like walking through a thick mist without really getting wet.

Gesturing widely with her arms, she completed the effect as she sewed shut their entrance.

"The Amethyst Arcade!"

If she was being truthful, there was a proud bit of smugness that she rather enjoyed, watching the adoration flash on Marco's face. His typical scowl had been substituted with wide eyes, studying the thousands of games that expanded out in endless rows around them.

"Holy… wow…"

Pony Head snorted and nudged him, leading a path into the arcade. "That's the first sentence I think I've heard you not swear, and it was like, the one time it would have been appropriate."

Marco let the comment pass, instead scratching his chin and letting his legs glide to the nearest machine, looking around for a coin slot.

"How do we pay?" Marco asked, realizing how foreign the notion sounded coming off his lips. He hasn't paid to play an arcade game in at least five years. Did they need to pre-register or something? He was only 14 and yet he felt he tragically couldn't keep up with the times.

"Oh, these games are free," Star chimed over her shoulder, trailing behind Pony Head who was gliding around with her eyes narrowed.

"Free…" he whispered, grin breaking like the dawn across his face.

Marco let the girls wander off shortly thereafter, getting entirely too engrossed himself in a fighting simulation game, themed around jousting and Arthurian legends. He at least had the courtesy to offer Star or Pony Head to play, but they seemed more interested in chattering and getting something to eat, so he shrugged and let them go.

It didn't take long for people to start placing their drinks on the dashboard, a signal he took to be ubiquitous across dimensions. On Earth, you place a token or quarter to indicate you're next - in a game like this, it meant someone wanted to try to take him on.

Now this he could get used to.

"Ooh, B-Fly, let's play this game," Pony Head chirped around the corner from the concessions, abandoning the interest of waiting for food only after they were insight of the menus.

That was sort of irritating - now that the food was nearby, it made Star want it even more.

"Mmm, it's got a one-player option - why don't you play, and I'll get us some snacks? I'm sort of hungry." Star smiled sheepishly, resting a hand on her stomach.

Pony Head blew a raspberry, however, and flew after her and floated next to the short concessions line. "Meh, it's not worth playing alone. I wouldn't ditch you for a video game."

Star played with her thumbs and looked down at her shoes. She wasn't sure how to respond, but clear that the undertone was directed at Marco's absence. Pony had called him selfish at the Bounce Lounge, but she had been angry and annoyed at the time; surely that was just a mindless insult, right? Marco wasn't really selfish – he had come along with them, after all.

She needed to nip this notion in the bud before it damaged Pony Head's perspective of him further. If they could all be friends, things would be so much easier.

"Hey, um, Princess Pony Head?" Star started politely, not meeting her eyes.

A tickle of pink mane danced along her hand when the princess turned to look at her, and Star leaned away out of habit.

"Hmm?"

"Did you… um, about Marco..." Star hesitated, not wanting to ruin her friend's night even further. It was supposed to be fun, but it felt like a de facto failure since they already ducked out of Pony's favorite place in the multiverse. Now it was just trying to make it fail less.

"Um… did you mean what you said about Marco?"

Pony Head rolled her eyes. "About him being all over you? Yeah. No one is that touchy with someone they're not trying to get busy with."

Star's mouth popped open to a comical little 'o' as she realized the words permeated the air between them. Her face flushed crimson, burning her heartmarks and extending all the way to her ears. She immediately hid her face in her hands, mortified at the thought, and she urgently began to backtrack.

"I u-uh, no! I u-m meant, you know - h-him being a j-j-jerk, and self-selfish. N-not that I th-think he is, and he wasn't, w-wasn't all over me, I, that's um, so n-no, you know, nevermind. Nevermind!"

Pony Head was quiet for a moment, though with Star's heart pounding in her ears, it felt like they were locked in a stare for a century. Mercifully, her friend started to giggle and winnie at her, and Star at least had the decency to be indignant. Her best friend was going to capitalize on her obvious social faux pas? A retort was starting to form on her lips, but seeing her friend smile and giggle so genuinely for the first time all night was too pure to ruin. Instead, Star allowed herself to be swept away with her own laughter, buckling over and grabbing at her ribs to calm the stitches that tickled her sides.

They had reached the front of the line by the time their chortling subsided, accepting some variety of salty and sweet snacks and headed back in the direction of the game Pony Head had tried to convince her to play.

Abruptly, the floating princess turned to Star with a knowing grin. "So, have you heard from Tom, lately?"

Star felt her breath catch at the mention of the prince of the underworld, almost dropping the bag of candy she was holding.

"N-no," Star stammered, trying to focus on the selection of a video game suitable for them. It suddenly felt like the most important task in the world.

Pony Head was one of the few friends she trusted with the knowledge of her crush on Tom Lucitor, and she intended to keep it that way if she could. The boy was handsome and had grown into a proper gentleman over the years, though their interactions were usually shy glances and polite dances at the Silver Bell Ball and the occasional diplomatic event. Flying King Pony Head and Madam Lucitor were somewhat close, so Pony Head was always trying to capture any sort of insider knowledge she could and pass it along to Star. On more than one occasion, Pony Head had tried to point out that beneath the persona he's got some, apparently, unresolved anger issues, but Star felt that sort of judgement was unfair. He had never treated her rudely, so perhaps Pony Head was being protective and misguided in the same way she was with Marco.

"Hmm, I wonder if we should see if he's free tonight," Pony Head hummed easily, and the sound that escaped through Star's nervously chattering teeth was discernibly not Mewman, nor even human. Frankly, it sounded like a mouse that had tried to quack like a duck, and it only made Star feel even more embarrassed.

"N-O way, Princess Pony Head! He would think this is totally lame. T-this is supposed to be about you, anyways!"

"Mmm," her friend replied mysteriously, and the strange questioning and vague answers were seriously starting to get on Star's nerves. Why would she tease her like that, just to bother her?

Speaking of things that bother her…

Star slowed her walk and pivoted, facing a row of machines that would lead them back towards the entrance. There was a clear frown pulling at the corners of her lips.

"Maybe we should check on Marco… I feel bad, he's the new one to dimensional travel. We should make sure he's okay."

"Girl," Pony shook her head from side-to-side. "At least play a few games with me. If that Earth turd isn't all talk, then he should be fine for five minutes without you."

Star nervously stuffed her face with a few more snacks, eyeing the rows of games towards the entrance, but let herself be pushed the opposite way towards Extreme Cake Icing Ice-Skating. It was an old favorite of hers, so Pony Head didn't have to work too hard to convince her.

The "controllers" were piping bags, and the goal was to try to skate your avatar around an ice rink, frosting and decorating as many cakes as quickly as possible before time runs out. Hindsight is, as they say, twenty-twenty, and Star couldn't help but wonder who had come up with the premise of this game. Because boy, they were genius.

"Yes! Yes, yes!" Star held the player one bag above her head and shook her hair back in forth, relishing the bold red letters on the screen.

PLAYER ONE (S T A R) IS SWEET!

BETTER LUCK NEXT TIME, PLAYER 2.

"I need to recruit the maker of this game," Star laughed as she put down her bag, enjoying Pony Head's slightly pouty bad-loser-attitude. They had been friends long enough for Star to know the flying princess wouldn't take it personally and just try to get her back twice as hard in the next game, so some post-game teasing was a welcome chance for Star to let out some of her less-than-dignified ideas.

"If we had a mind like this in the castle, think how quickly we could get food out from the kitchens! Everyone on ice skates instead of shoes. Could you imagine?"

The pink-haired presence laughed as they moved down another row of games. "I could imagine you fallin' on your butt a few dozen times, yeah,"

"Hey!" Star turned her nose up and away. "I'm an excellent skater, thank you."

"Virtual skating is a little easier than the real thing."

"And how would you know?" Star realized she had started to bounce her brows to challenge her friend, and almost gasped. That was a direct reflection of Marco's influence, and she rearranged her face to a more fitting poise.

Pony Head, thankfully, didn't notice anything awry. She gasped in false-offense, nudging Star's shoulder. "If that's a jab at me not having legs, that's low girl! You baaaaad."

A tint of pink blush crept around her cheeks, unsure if she was feeling pride or shame at Pony Head's response. Curse that boy. Star needed to keep her manners in better check.

They approached another game, a more standard fighting-style simulation where each girl controlled a different icon. Star chose the Elf Queen, appreciating her long white tresses with a crown of thorns and her fierce, confident eyes. Pony Head had a difficult time settling between Yula the Rage, a barbarian looking woman with bulging muscles and bright red hair or Tyhin, some sort of swordsman with a blindfold and high defense. She ultimately settled on Yula, with a passing comment on the sanctity of a girl's night out, which Star chose not to comment on.

During their second round of play, Pony Head undoubtedly thrashing her the first time, Star started to find her mind wandering. Stifling coals of guilt sunk in her stomach, causing her to feel hot and uncomfortable. Marco was okay, right? Pony Head seemed sure that he could handle himself, and he didn't make a big deal of them leaving. She was overthinking things. Nothing to worry about.

As an attempt for distraction, Star blurted out a random thought. "Sooo… what did you do, Princess Pony Head? I mean, if you don't mind…"

Her friend took a second to respond, trying and failing to execute a combo. Star went on the offensive in response.

"Uhh… oh, you mean, to get sent to St. O's?"

"Yeah." Block, dodge, deflect. Star was catching up.

"Hmm," Pony Head responded slowly, focus drawn on regaining ground with their dueling forces. Yula the Rage, at half health, went into a frenzy befitting her name. "Aw, yeah, rage time!"

Star quipped right back. "Oooh, but that means you're at half health!"

Her friend scowled in focus, but returned to the conversation. "I kept sneaking off dimension, going to the Bounce Lounge and stuff. How else do you think I get as many ex's as I do?"

That made Star bark a laugh, knowing it wasn't a very becoming sound but not particularly minding her manners at that moment. It was easy to get caught up in the competition.

"That's a fair point! But did the King and Queen just get fed up? Or was there like, a tipping point?"

Pony Head hummed for a moment, trying to pull off a defensive parry. It failed, and Star landed an expertly executed thorny uppercut. "Yeah, I started sneakin' out of the castle during important dinners for my sisters and diplomats and whatever. I got my scissors confiscated and junk, but it ain't my fault boys are always falling in love with me!"

The princess whipped her pink mane around and Star giggled when it brushed the blonde hairs on her arm, but didn't let it phase her progress.

"Ooooh, here… Yes! Boom!" Star practically threw down her controller in excitement, landing a fatal blow against Yula in the game. The Elf Queen bowed elegantly, straightened her crown, and ripped the head off her opponent. Star watched the victory display with dazzling eyes, her heart marks temporarily flashing into tiny trophies.

"Geez," Pony Head commented, admiring Star's win. "I forgot how violent this game was. But you whooped me, girl. Best two out of three?"

"Bring it on," Star replied, queuing up the final round.