Sooooooooorry! I know, I took forever to update this. Lots of stuff has been happening like vacation, the flu, holidays, other stories to write, writing blocks... yeah, sorry. But, I did manage to bang out a pretty long chapter that's loaded with star and Eclipsa's interactions. I personally think this chapter reshapes Star yet again, which... Well, takes some effort. So anyway, reviews.

Star's Keyblade4114 - Toffee put the "magic bomb" on Star while she was knocked out. He also bugged her. :)

Now I don't mean to beg, but please review! While I appreciate all the reviews I've gotten on my previous chapters, getting only one review isn't saddening and frankly isn't helping my motivation. And the zero reviews I got on chapter 10 kinda sucked. So if you want to keep reading this without waiting for months like this update, please review!

*IMPORTANT: Eclipsa's conversations with Star inside Star's mind are in italics. When Eclipsa speaks, the line is preceded with "E~" and when Star speaks, the line is preceded with "S~". If there is no tag, then it's either specified in the prose or it's the same speaker as the previous paragraph.

It felt and looked exactly how it had in the dream. She immediately knew this was "

Eclipsa. She was frozen in position inside a large crystal that dominated the room. Her gloved left hand was stuck out to her side. Her bare right hand was clasped to her chest, and the glove was to her side.

Toffee had Star's sword—although she wasn't sure when he'd gotten it. He struck the crystal with it, carving a large fissure. He cut out a square of the crystal, which fell to the floor with a loud THUD! Inside, Eclipsa's head dropped limp and she didn't move. Many people around the room looked concerned. Star frowned in confusion but wasn't particularly worried about it. Toffee, as always, seemed to be the least surprise din the room.

Eclipsa let out a huge gasp. "Before!" she cried.

Star was even more confused now. "Before what?"

Eclipsa seemed desperate. "Before!" she shouted again.

Toffee calmly popped a coin into the vending machine in the corner. The whole room stared at him, wondering why he would be doing such a thing in such an intense moment. "She means B-4," he explained. He tossed her a Snookers bar and she gobbled it up hungrily.

Once she was done, she addressed them regally: "I suppose you didn't come here to free me?"

"You know your presence would be detrimental," Toffee admitted.

"Then what is it you want from me?"

"I believe that what we want is a telepathic bond between you and young Star."

Eclipsa thought for a moment, then concluded, "Another chocolate, please?"

Toffee's annoyance was written all over his face as he got her another one.

She nibbled on it, then spoke again. "I suppose I could do that." She sneezed then shook her head. "Now where were we?"

Toffee blinked. "You were going to create a bond with Star."

"Well, I believe I would need the girl's permission, wouldn't I?"

"No you don't; just do it," Toffee seethed.

Eclipsa laughed. "You really don't understand the inner complexities of dark magic, do you, cute lizard?" She patted Toffee's head while he deadpanned her, entirely unamused. "You know what they say, after all, leave it to the expert! An I don't mean to promote myself, but I do believe that I'm quite good at it." She zapped the half-eaten Snookers bar, and it regrew to full. "Ah, now that's much better, isn't it? Now, what was I doing?" She glanced at Toffee, amused. "Ah, that's right. So, Star my dear, do you accept the terms of the bond?"
"Depends. What are they?" She had a basic idea of the terms, but she had caught on to Eclipsa's game and was following along with it.

"Well, I'll be inside your mind. I can talk to you and make suggestions to your brain. And, your marks… now, dear, whatever happened to your marks?"

"Ah, lost 'em. Glossaryck sacrificed himself because I lost control of my Hate."

Eclipsa frowned in surprise. "Well, then. You'll get my marks and get your magic back. Of course, you don't seem to have your wand. But at least you can dip down."

Star mulled it over. Maybe that was the problem. Why she couldn't beat Marco. She'd be more powerful with her magic, and maybe she could use it to save Marco from his curse. While she didn't want an evil queen lurking around inside her head, the promise of magic hooked her. After all, she didn't seem very evil. Of course, none of this really mattered since Star really had no choice.

Eclipsa extended her hand—covered in dark purple veins—and said, "So, what do you say?"

Star felt a nudge—suddenly being reminded of her dream, in which Eclipsa had struck the same pose and she had felt the same nudge.

She extended her own arm and gripped Eclipsa's. She closed her eyes and waiting for something to happen—

"Sweetie, the other hand."

It was then that Star realized she was clutching the back of Eclipsa's hand. "Oh, sorry." She swapped her right hand for her left. This time, the effect was immediate. Star gasped, and her eyes turned to solid purple. Her marks were now upside-down, and a sort of pedestal protruded from the bend of the heart—they were spades.

Star's vision returned to normal, and she heard a voice. It is quite fun to annoy that lizard, isn't it? Star looked around her but couldn't find a source. In here, Star. You're looking too far out.

She finally realized that the voice was coming from inside her. Oh, hey, she thought back.

You know, it's quite cluttered in here. Ah! Perhaps this place could use little spring cleaning!

Star felt dizzy and could have sworn she heard crashing and clanging inside her head.

Let's see… this here, this here, this here, my, what is THAT doing in your Funny Pranks section? Ah, no matter. I must admit, I was quite the prankster myself when I was your age. Still am.

Star had forgotten when she was for a moment. When she looked around the room, all she saw were raised eyebrows. "Hehe… it works," Star finally said. Her eyes drifted to Eclipsa, whose head had fallen to her chest. She seemed to be unconscious.

"Great," Toffee said without enthusiasm. "Now let's go before we're caught by the Commission!"

As it was, the Magical High Commission didn't arrive until nearly a quarter hour after they'd left. Eclipsa was re-entrapped in crystal by Rhombulus, but she was very much free.

As they arrived at Agatenus and the lizards' headquarters, Star glared up at Toffee. "I thought we had a deal. No going behind each other's backs."

"No, you made that deal. Not me."

Star clenched her fists but didn't respond. She walked back to her quarters without a word and lay on her bed. How in the world did I get into this mess? Star thought to herself. How did I come to working with my enemy who I had known full well I couldn't trust?

Another voice came into her head. I know what you're going through, Star. See, I loved that monster long before I ran away. I was perhaps your age, actually. Then I was told I couldn't love him. I was so heartbroken that I sought out someone else to help me. That was my Mewman husband-but the fact was, I never really loved or trusted him. And that's where you are now. You know what I did next? I fled my husband in order to combat the forces keeping my love away from me.

S~ So you're saying that I should go after Marco on my own?

E~ I don't know. Is that what I said?

Her approach was actually quite similar to Glossaryck's. Although it sometimes annoyed her, it appealed to her at the moment. Well… should I tell Toffee I'm leaving?

E~ You could. Of course, there's a tremendous chance he'll try to stop you, and there's no way he'd give you that magical sword.

A plan began to form in her head. She'd wait until night, then steal the sword and escape.

E~ Now that sounds like it could work.

S~ Only one way to find out.

She went to bed more content than she'd been in a while. Eclipsa's voice was the company her lonely soul had sought all this time.

Star tried to stay awake that night, but she eventually dozed off around 10 PM. Luckily, Eclipsa woke her from within her head, and she got up and prepared for her escape. She didn't bother with taking anything-she had forgotten that she was unable to instantly create anything she needed with her wand. But there was a good chance that the sword had the same abilities accessible by magic-users as her wand, so the slip would probably cause no harm. She started straight down the hallway in the opposite direction of the entry room, toward where she assumed Toffee's quarters must have been, when Eclipsa stopped her: I can sense the sword, but it's not this way. It's back the other way.

S~ Really? Ya sure?"

E~ Quite positive. Unless you have better reason against it.

S~ Nope. Is it getting closer?

E~ …Yes, it is.

Star entered the entry room where Agatenus's throne stood.

E~ It's in here. I know it is.

S~ I don't see anything.

E~ I think it's slightly below you. Ap, ap, too far. Take a step back. Now left—wait, too far. Back to the right. Now that's too far again, and I believe you actually need to take a step forward. Huh. maybe I could sense it better if you raised your right arm above your head…

Star danced around the room strangely, trying to follow Eclipsa's instructions. She was moving frontward when Eclipsa told her to go the opposite direction, and as she turned, she tripped and fell onto her stomach. "Ughhhhhh…"

E~ While this is quite amusing, we'll be caught soon unless we figure something else out.

…

…

S~ I think I sense the sword.

E~ Perfect. Follow your instinct.

Star closed her eyes and walked toward the buzzing feeling she felt. She could feel it getting stronger, stronger, stronger-

"Uh!" Star gasped as she crashed into Agatenus's throne. It jabbed into her stomach, causing her to double over and hit her head on the throne's back. "Ughhhhhh," she groaned.

E~ You all right, dear? I suggest keeping your eyes open this time. Look before you leap, as they say. I think you should take the advice literally.

S~ Yeah, yeah… okay, here it is.

Star jumped back when a blast of magenta magic blasted a hole in the floor.

S~ What was THAT?!

E~ Dear, how else did you expect to get down there?

S~ Oh, I don't know, pull up the floorboards!
E~ I suppose that could work, too.

S~ Just warn me before you use my magic next time.

Eclipsa paused before answering. As you wish.

S~Then let's get this sword and go.

Star looked back down into the hole in the floor and took the sword from where it laid beneath. She looked back down at the hole. "Now how are we going to cover this up?"

E~ Well, I could always-

"No!" Star said aloud. She covered her mouth, hoping that no one had heard her. She was already feeling fatigued from dipping down, and there was no telling what exactly Eclipsa's next spell would do. She suddenly realized that this must have been how Marco had felt when she'd first met him. She felt annoyed and overwhelmed, but she also felt that Eclipsa would be a good friend for her.

Star knelt on the ground and swept her sword in an arc just above the hole. Solid material covered up the hole, but it didn't quite match the floorboards around it. Seeing a sheet draped over the throne, she took it and threw it over the newly-filled hole as if it had fallen there.

"Now let's get out of here!" Star whispered. She tiptoe-ran out of the room. She stood on a dais-like piece of floor at the end of the hallway, and it rose.

She found herself in the desert of the yet-to-be-named dimension. She raised her sword to cut a portal but remembered something.

S~ Toffee disabled the portal-cutting magic.

E~ That won't stop you; you have magic again, after all.

S~ Oh yeah, thanks.

Star channeled her magic as she swung the sword. A portal opened up to Mewni. Star stepped inside, and she suddenly found herself in front of Mewni castle. Here again.

But that was not her destination. She asked Eclipsa where to go next.

E~ He's after the Sanctuary Magic Water, you say? Well, I can direct you to the sanctuary. Now head toward the Mewni Jungle.

S~ What…? You mean The Forest of Certain Death?

E~ Is that what they call it now? It was quite a peaceful place in my time.

S~ Well, it's definitely not peaceful anymore.

Eclipsa paused. We'll be fine. Go ahead.

S~ Are you sure?

E~ Well, do you want to save the boy or not?

S~ Of course I do.

E~Then you gotta go through Mew-The Forest of Certain Death.

Star approached The Forest of Certain Death. She took a deep breath and crossed into the diverse and dangerous jungle.

E~ See, nothing to it-oh! What's that?!

Star swiped her sword to the right, blasting a large man-eating bird out of the air. That's a Warrior Hawk. That's nothing compared to what's coming.

E~ Well… I suppose I understand your hesitance, then.

Star picked up the pace when she heard rustling behind her. She quickly leaped over one of those plants that block the path and leave the only way through to be between their gaping jaws. The jaws snapped shut just as she passed through, chomping down on the creature that had been chasing her-she hadn't gotten a good look at it. Eclipsa! Star thought to the new resident inside her head. Directions, please.

E~ Ah, yes, let's see here:

Follow the trail fifteen yards ahead,

Don't take a left, but right instead

S~ What are you do-

E~ Right!

To the moon-shaped crater I shall sneak.

Then continue toward the mountain peak.

Slightly left; toward the mountain in the distance.

Then finally stop when I reach the lake,

And to the crocodile I do speak

The duo-or rather, Star, arrived at the lake, but Star paused to try to understand Eclipsa's last line.

E~ Say to the crocodile there your name and that you want to enter the Sanctuary.

Star did so, and the crocodile crawled off into the water without responding.

S~ I feel stupid.

E~ Just wait.

Star waited. And waited. I still feel stupid, Eclipsa.

Just then, a tower of crocodiles rose up from the water. When they dove back down, a pretty large dome-shaped building stood in the lake. Stepping stones appeared in the water, presumably to use to cross to the Sanctuary in the middle of the lake.

S~ So what was that all about?

E~ You just revealed the Sanctuary. It's inaccessible to anyone but you and Queen Moon.

S~ Wait, Eclipsa! You just made me open the only way for Marco to get the magic water!

And there he was. He stepped out of the trees toward them, intent on getting past them to the Sanctuary, where he would be one step closer to breaking the Blood Moon Pact.

S~ What have I done?