The Blood Moon Ball
Levi learns of the coming of the Blood Moon Ball from his old friend Tom. Suspicious of Tom's change of heart, he decides to accept his invitation to attend the Ball, asking Jackie out as his date in the process.
The day was January 13, 2016. The previous year had now passed, 12 days ago, and it was now time to start another year
From the sky, in an eerie glow, the moon turned red. How the moon is up even though it's day, we will never know.
Down below, flames rose from beneath the ground. A silhouette of a carriage rose from it. The fire died down, leaving the unscathed carriage on one of the parking areas (whose horse is a freaking skeleton, by the way). The door opened, and out came a purple-skinned boy looking no older than about fourteen/fifteen. He looked at the school with interest, his three-eye sungalsses reflecting the light.
This was Tom. Yes, that Tom.
'So this is where Star goes to school.' He thought. He walked, each step leaving a fire imprint on the ground. Oskar, whose car was parked next to the carriage, turned and calmly spoke, "You're parked on the handi-"
Although it had no eyes, the keytarist definitely felt the intense glare the skeleton horse was giving him. Wisely, he shut up and resumed playing his keytar.
'Strange. And they say I'm an eccentric one. Then again...' He thought.
As Tom walked, he had caught the attention of almost every student in school. He merely passed by them, paying no mind to the various students staring at him. That included Janna and Jackie, mesmerized as they rode on Jackie's skateboard. For a moment it seemed as though, despite the new arrival, it didn't hinder her from skateboarding at all.
That was until they crashed onto Levi.
He didn't bother to look up at the demon as he was too busy playing on his phone. As one could expect, they fell to the floor hard.
"Sorry, Levi." Jackie said, groaning in slight pain on her back.
"No, it's also my fault. I didn't look what was in front of me." He said. Janna just groaned, though more on annoyance than pain.
"Ugh... who was that guy?" She asked. Levi looked in confusion.
"Did someone pass by?"
"Some guy who leaves behind fire every step. He's also wearing sunglasses, but it's strange because it's meant for three eyes." Jackie explained. His face turned from confusion to coldness.
"Of course. Tom."
"I take it you know him." Janna noted.
"Know him? He's Star's demon ex-boyfriend!"
At that they stared at him in surprise. "STAR HAD A BOYFRIEND?!"
He shushed them. "Not so loud, you two!" They immediately apologized. He looked at the trail of fire leading to Star's classroom.
'I wonder why he's here. It's been sometime now since they broke up, so why now all of a sudden?' He thought, questioning himself. Almost immediately, he might have found his answer...
...in the form of the Mewnian princess forcefully dragging the demon prince away by the arm from the school and to the carriage.
The trio looked at each other. They made a run for it.
"Nope, nope, nope, NOPE! Listen, no matter what, you need to leave, pronto. Take your carriage, fire, and dead horse and go back to the underworld!" She rebuked, throwing all his stuff back in the carriage.
"Wait... I'm dead?" The skeleton horse asked, confused.
"No, you're not dead. You're undead." Levi said, coming in with the two girls.
"Un... dead?" It asked, still confused.
"You'll get it soon enough, skele-horse." Janna said. The horse lowered its head down in sadness.
"Levi? You study here too?" Tom asked, surprised to see his former old friend.
"Yeah, I do. Now... what the hell are you doing here all of a sudden?" He asked back. Inwardly, Janna snickered.
"Well, I'm glad you asked. I'm-" Tom then noticed Star walking away. He sighed.
"Oh, come on, Starship!" He used his flames to sweep her off of her feet and bring her back to him on his arms.
"It's the Blood Moon Ball! It only happens once every 667 years, you know."
Star backflipped off of his arms and angrily stared him down.
"We broke up! Period!" She said, her anger intensified.
"I'm guessing they had a bad break-up." Janna whispered to the two friends.
Levi sighed. "Yeah. It's more of Tom's fault, though."
Tom sighed. "I know, I know, I know, Star. But I've mellowed out now."
Star skeptically looked at him. So did the others.
"I hired a life coach, Brian," He pulled him into their view. "Hey." He said, waving at them. The other three introduced themselves to him before he was pushed off. "He's an awesome guy. I also got a bunny, a happy one," He showed a pink fluffy bunny. "and I've been anger-free for 53 days!" On his shirt was a button that confirmed what he said.
"That doesn't sound much for you, but at least you're doing right." Levi commented. Tom frowned at him.
"Gee, thanks for undermining my progress, you... you... you... whatever." Tom sarcastically quipped.
"53?" Star asked.
"Here's the bunny. Pet him. He's adorable. Don't you want to pet him?" He said. The bunny winked at Star.
"Well... he sure is cute." She said. Before she could, Janna and Jackie cut her off and pet it themselves.
"Where'd you get him?" Jackie asked, ruffling its fur.
"Courtesy of Brian. As I said, he's an awesome guy." Tom answered.
"No need to thank me. I'm just doing what I can to help him." Brian said.
Before any more words could be said...
"Hi-yaahhhh!"
All so suddenly, Marco appeared out of nowhere... and chopped of Tom's hand. They all gasped. Tom shrieked in pain.
"Back off, demon!" Marco said.
"Marco!" Star and Levi yelled.
Tom held his arm. "Aaargh, you...!" His eyes then glowed red. He growled.
"Oh no." Star said. Levi's arms exhibited the white markings.
Brian quickly walked over to the demon prince. He had him walk in circles as he told him to "walk it out and talk it out, walk it out and talk it out..." however he could not stop his head (and his heated glare) from staying fixated on the safe kid.
Marco still assumed a stance in case.
"Marco, you better run." Star warned. Luckily enough, Tom calmed down.
"Oh-ho-ho no-no-no-no-no!" He laughed, his eyes having lost its glow. He sighed, having stopped walking. "No, no. That's why I got my support! Got the angries out!" He explained.
His dismembered hand, which had been unmoving since it got chopped off, picked up the bunny and levitated back to his wrist, almost as if it wasn't affected by anything at all. Surprisingly, the bunny had been unfazed.
"Everything is... phew! It's all under control now." He said, petting the bunny rather too rigorously, that its fur became more poofy.
"Now it's even cuter." Janna quipped, petting the bunny herself.
"Marco, don't. This... is Tom." She said, stopping him.
"Demon ex-boyfriend Tom?" He asked.
"The one and the same." Levi said.
Tom walked up to him, offering his hand. He accepted it, making a handshake. "Well, it's, um, nice to meet you, Marco. I guess."
"Whaaaat is he doing here all of a sudden?" He asked again.
"He's taking me to the Blood Moon Ball." Star explained.
Marco pointedly looked at her. "Star... never go with a predator to a second location." The other two girls were taken aback by this.
"Marco... you do know that's not how it will work with Tom, right? He may be bad, but he's not going to cross the line." Levi advised. 'Is he?' Still, despite his own words, he doubted himself.
Tom simply ignored Marco's words, giving the bunny back to Brian before turning to walk towards Star.
"Look, Star... I understand that you're mad. You think that I'm a total jerk..."
"Jerk with a heart of a jerk, if I may add." Levi quipped.
"...I get it. Yeah, little old me, demon Tom, finally understanding. But I've changed, and for the better." He pointed at her headband. "Remember Star, I'm not the only one with horns." He finished. Star smiled. Tom walked back to his carriage.
"Alright, no pressure. If you decide to go..." He handed her a small black bell. "... just ring this bell." He then turned to Levi. "You too, if you want to go, but you need to bring a partner." He also gave him a bell. He entered the carriage, and it engulfed itself in flames.
"Oops." He said, laughing. "Almost forgot." His hand came out of the fire and made a small window. He handed the two small black hammers. "Almost forgot the hammer. I hope I see you two there, especially you, Star." The fire and carriage disappeared.
Levi and Jackie looked at each other in worry.
"You two lovebirds know what to do. I'm outta here." Janna said, leaving. The two immediately blushed deeply.
"We're not lovebirds, Janna!" They both said. They noticed the other two gone already. With that, Levi sighed.
"She does have a point. Jackie?"
"Yes?"
"Will you be my date to the Blood Moon Ball? I swear it'll just be a friendly date."
The smile was slowly creeping onto her face. She had her answer.
"Sure. I'd love to."
Hours later, at Jackie's house...
"Levi?"
"Yes?"
"I knew what I said, but are you sure we're not making a mistake going there? I mean, the 'Blood Moon Ball?' It's a bit suspicious to me."
The two were changing into formal clothes for the ball. Strange how their changing rooms were close to one another.
"It was suspicious to me already. But it's not the event I have my suspicions on."
"Then what is it?"
"It's about Tom. I swear to you, the guy's had problems with his temper and his control freak tendencies. Sure it wasn't noticeable earlier, even with that slight outburst, but in the time I've witnessed his and Star's relationship, it was pretty obvious to me. Not to mention, he's got some Yandere stuff going on in mindset. It has to be a facade he's putting up to make sure he can be with her again."
"So is that why you decided to go? To see if he's really changed?"
"Pretty much, yeah."
"You're not going to enjoy?"
"Even for a Plurixian, the underworld has a lot of stuff we wouldn't get or do or have. Dangerous or boring, even. Probably the only thing I'll enjoy there would be the dance. They say that during the Blood Moon Ball, the moon will glow red and choose two lucky souls to be intertwined forever."
"Are you hoping for it?"
"What, for us? Not in the slightest."
They walked out of their changing rooms and both were stunned at each other.
Levi wore a dark blue coat with a black shirt underneath, with black slacks, shoes, and watch. He decided to just be simple, only adding a few extra things, like his hair set up with gel that shined. The simplicity of his outfit made him look even better.
Jackie, meanwhile had worn a sea green dress with a corsage located at the left side. She wore heels and had her hair tied up nicely. She also put light makeup. Although it wasn't much, her look already accentuated her beauty more.
"Wow..." They both said.
"You look..." Jackie trailed off.
"... stunning." They were blushing and smiling, nervously looking at each other. This was soon interrupted when a flash hit them both.
"Gotcha!" Janna said, with her phone's camera taking a picture of them. "You two look so cute together!" She said.
"Janna!" They said in embarrassment. She laughed.
"So you're worried about Tom, Levi. Don't sweat it! If he is now who he claims to be, then just beat the crap out of him for hurting Star, if he ever did." She advised. Levi sighed.
"I guess you're right, but one punch ought to do it." He said. Janna shrugged.
"Should we get going, then?" Jackie asked. Levi nodded.
"Yeah. I'll ring the bell." He went to get the bell and hammer and came back. He struck the bell. A deep resonating sound came from it. Outside, a pillar of fire rose. There appeared a carriage carried by a red demon, bound in chains. It almost felt like as if it was an elevator.
It opens.
"I guess that's your ride." Janna said. They looked at her. "I'll stay here and watch your house. Don't worry." She gave them a thumbs up gesture.
"Alright, Janna. If you say so. C'mon Levi, let's go." They both entered and sat down.
"Which floor, mortals?" The demon asked. They looked at each other in confusion.
"The bottom, I guess?" The demon seemed to understand what Jackie said. The doors close, and the elevator carriage lowers down to the underworld. They held hands as they waited, turning away from each other, but still smiling.
"You have arrived." The demon said from outside, the door opening. They walked out.
"Hey, you guys." Tom greeted.
"I'm guessing Star hasn't arrived yet?" Levi asked.
He nodded. "Yeah. I'm just waiting for her."
"Well speaking of her, I think that's her carriage now." Indeed as Jackie said, Star's carriage had arrived. She came out. Levi smirked while Jackie gazed at her in awe.
'Wow... she's so beautiful.' Jackie thought.
'Heh. I knew she'd pull off all the stops.' Levi thought.
"Star Butterfly. Don't you clean up nicely." Tom noted.
Star was a bit skeptical about that, so she settled for a simple thank you.
"Here, I got you this." He showed her a horned spider. Red flags were immediately raised in Levi and Jackie's minds. When they looked at each other, they knew what the other was thinking.
"Uh, what is that?" Star asked.
"It's a hair thing. It for your... well you know. Anyways it should help you fit in here." Tom explained.
Star reacted with a look of disgust. "How sweet. But I've got my own thing, you know? I'm pretty happy with what I have. Anyways, let's go have fun. Levi, Jackie, shall we?" She asked. THe two smiled and nodded, but behind those smiles were suspicions on Tom.
Back at Marco's house...
In Star's room, Marco slumped down on a chair, eating nachos while in his outfit, including the sombrero he had with him when he talked with Star earlier.
His mind was in somewhat of a bind. He always looked out for Star. She knew of his distrust for Tom. But she told him that: First, he wasn't invited; Second, it's a different kind of fun according to her, and; Three, he has to let her do the right thing for herself.
Now, he knew these were all good points, but he felt that he should just go 'fuck this, I'm doing what I think is right.' The only thing that was keeping him from doing so was her words, especially when she told him that he has to trust her in doing the right thing for herself.
Not to mention she kicked him away. He knew Star won't let him go with her but to kick him? In all honesty it kinda hurt him.
"Man, even Levi and Jackie got invited. Damn it. I know Star's right about how I should let her make her own decisions, but I just have a bad feeling about this." The young Latino said aloud, with no one in the house, luckily. His parents were out on a trip, so he and the princess had the house to themselves for the next few days.
He sighed. "What do I do?" He looked up at the blood moon.
All of a sudden, he heard a voice. "Blood moon tonight."
He jumped from his seat in surprise and looked around. "What the..." He wondered. He then looked at a portrait of an old sea captain.
"Hm... strange." He said while chewing on his nachos. He looked back down.
"The moon of lovers." The voice spoke again. This time he quickly stood up and looked at the portrait again. He then looked at the bell and hammer and back at the moon, and back again at the bell and hammer. It's blood red cresent ornament shined. He bit his lip. He sighed.
"I know you won't like what I'm about to do Star, but I think this is what I need to do. Please don't hate me for this." Marco said, almost sadly, but he strengthened his resolve. He then approached and took the small hammer and rang the bell.
Meanwhile, back at the ball, Tom gleefully looked at the photo booth. There were two demons ready for a picture.
"Smile." The picturetaker said. The two did, as blood poured on them from above, the picture taken after the blood was poured.
"How beautiful." He said. The two demons exited the booth, and Star and Tom walked up next. Levi and Jackie decided not to have a picture taken at the booth after seeing what happened.
"I got my phone. Here, smile." Levi said, taking out his phone and turned it towards them. They smiled, and Levi took the selfie.
"Perfect." They both said. They then looked back at the other two.
"My best friend's a unicorn." Star told him.
"Well I'm sure they're not related." Tom rebuffed.
"I'm not gonna let myself be bathed in unicorn blood, Tom." They heard this.
"Unicorn blood?" Jackie asked.
"Star has a friend who's a unicorn head. I know it's strange, but there's a lot of stranger universes out there. But even she's a better person than Tom." Levi said. Jackie shrugged and smiled.
"Are you... are you getting angry?" Star asked as she saw him petting his bunny behind his back.
"No." Tom stifled a word, really trying to push aside his anger.
"Look, you do you. I'll be off somewhere else. I'll get myself a drink." Star left. Levi and Jackie followed.
Tom could only look on, desperately trying to control his temper.
"Here it comes again..." Star said. The three were at the punch bowl, and they were staring at the bubbling red liquid.
"Bloop! Out comes the fish!" Levi said as the skeleton fish jumped out of the liquid and back in. The three laughed.
"Hi Henry!" Star said.
Two demons then appeared.
"You must be Tom's date." One of the two, the stubby demon with horns and no midsection, said. Star shrugged.
"I guess I am." She said.
"Well I hope you're happy. He made this whole entire ball completely boring, all for you." The demon told her.
"I wouldn't say it's boring." Star said.
"Oh really?" The demon pointed to two fellow demons dancing. They both looked in their late tens. "Aloof attractive people. Boring!" He said.
"I wouldn't say boring. I'd say that's sweet." Jackie said.
The demon emerged from the punch bowl and ignored her. "Bubbling cauldrons that don't even melt your flesh off! What the heck is this, nap time or somethin'? 'Cause I'm already tired of it!" He continued to rant, pointing at an empty can on the ground, "Piece of garbage that doesn't destroy the universe. Stupid cockroach that lives inside. I'm over this crap already!"
"Is your standards for a ball that unnecessarily high?" Levi cut in.
"And who are you?" He asked.
"I'm Levi, from Plurix. And I'm going to be the guy that knocks your teeth out if you don't get outta here." He threateningly said.
"And what can you do about it-" He was promptly cut off by a punch that knocked his lights out. Darkness energy receded back to Levi.
"Was that really necessary?" Star asked.
"The guy's being a jerk. And who is he to say that those two dancing demons are boring? I agree with Jackie. It's sweet."
"Do you want to dance?" The other demon of the two, a tall demon with a short head, asked Star.
"You should probably get your friend outta here." Jackie spoke.
"Also, her dance card's full." Tom spoke as well, cutting in between the demon and Star.
"Oh, I see. I bet that your soul and her soul are going to be like..." He intertwined his fingers. "... mmmmmm." He finished.
Star, confused, also intertwined her fingers. "What's 'mmmmmm'?" She asked. No one answered, causing her to let her fingers go, her arms back to her sides. Eventually the tall demon dragged his demon friend out of the place.
The two demons that the stubby demon pointed at walked up to Levi and Jackie. "Thanks for the compliment, you two, and for defending us from that guy. We really appreciated it. And we didn't expect it to be coming from a human and a Plurixian." The female demon said. The two smiled.
"It's no problem. Honestly, it really was sweet." Levi said.
"We saw how you two really felt for each other. Good luck in your relationship, you two." Jackie said. The two demons smiled.
"It just isn't so common for things like this to be supported by other species, us being demons and all. To hear your support, it's just... something." The male demon said.
"Well, just continue supporting each other. I think you two have a bright future with each other." Levi said.
"Again, thanks." She then held hands with her lover.
"Also... are you two in a relationship?" He asked. Immediately the two blushed.
"N-n-n-no!" They stuttered. The two demons laughed.
"You two look so cute together. We'll be rooting for you two." They said as they left them to themselves.
'That's the second time now!' Levi thought. Jackie had similar thoughts. Their thoughts were interrupted, however, by the ball organizer.
He spoke through the microphone, "Ahem. Good evening to you all. Now, I would like to request all of you to turn your heads skyward." On the ceiling, there was a hand-shaped skylight. A few seconds later, a cresent-shaped opening appeared on the skylight.
"When the light of the blood moon descends and selects two lucky souls, it will bind them together for eternity in its hypnotic, ruby gaze." He further said, intertwining his fingers to get the meaning through.
Jackie turned to him, surprised. He was just as surprised as her.
The light shined through the skylight opening as the eerie organ music was played.
Immediately, Tom looked at the organ in frustration. "That is not the music I asked for! Ugh, this is driving me crazy!" He looked at Star, who was a bit suspicious.
"Don't go anywhere. I'll be right back." Tom then left. Star shrugged.
"Okay." She said, and wandered off.
"I don't think I told you how much Tom is a total control freak, haven't I?" Levi wondered to Jackie.
"Nope. But is he that desperate?" She asked.
"I guess so. C'mon, let's dance." He said, taking her hands in his, and they danced. They didn't notice Marco coming through the crowd, searching for Star. To disguise himself from everyone knowing who he was, he wore a skull mask before leaving for the underworld.
"Star! Star!" He whispered, following her. She did not hear him, continuing to aimlessly wander around. He went through many of the dancing couples before finally reaching to her.
He grabbed her hand and pulled her close to him.
And just like that, the light of the blood moon shined on them, greatly surprising not only them, but the crowd too...
...except for Levi and Jackie, who were also under the focus of the light of the blood moon. They widened their eyes as they looked at each other, drawn to the other's longing gaze.
Shock was very evident on everyone's looks. In the history of the underworld, there had never been any occurrence in the Blood Moon Ball that the light of the blood moon shined on two pairs. Until now.
Within the crowd, the demon pair that thanked the two of them cheered amongst each other.
"They got picked!" The female demon happily said.
"I know! This is so awesome! You go you two!" The male demon said, also happy.
The ball organizer had his eyes widened. 'Never in my long lifespan have I ever seen such an occurrence like this! I would surmise that the blood moon had a reason to pick two pairs of lucky souls this time! What a joyous occasion! This will be written down in the history books!' He thought in glee.
As if on cue, another kind of organ music played. As if tranced by each other's gazes upon one another, Star and Marco, and Levi and Jackie danced.
They turned, spun, twisted, and danced to their heart's content. They felt no other presence except for their dance partner.
As Marco continued to dance with Star, she looked more and more dreamy under his gaze, gasping in pleasure at the dance they were doing. Marco could only smile under his mask, as if he was happy that his partner was dancing happily with him.
Likewise, it was almost the same with the other two. Only for them, they could speak freely, albeit under the pleasure of their dance, they could only form short phrases. They looked like they were smitten with each other.
"I never... knew you could dance like this... oh my! This is so... ooooohhhh." Jackie said, gasping and moaning.
"I had to take... dancing lessons... as part of my training in royalty... gods this just..." Levi trailed off, moaning just a bit as they continued dancing. He instead settled for a warm smile. Jackie could amost feel the heat coming off of her face as she intently looked at him. He felt the redness on his cheeks too.
Tom could only watch, seething in so much rage and hatred. Not at Levi and Jackie, that he can tolerate. In fact he almost felt happy for them if not for what was happening right now.
He wasn't just angry towards Star's dancer.
He was extremely livid.
"Staaaaarrrrrr..." Marco said to her.
"How do you know my name?" She asked dreamily.
"It's me! Marco!" He said, removing his mask. Almost immediately Star's expression changed to one of surprise.
"Marco?! What are you doing here?!" She asked.
"I don't know, I just... felt compelled to be here. But anyways, let's get out of here." He said.
Tom angrily walked up to Marco and shoved him to the floor.
At that point, Levi and Jackie finished their dance, with him pulling her close towards him, shades of red adorning their cheeks, panting and gasping. They could only smile and hug. But they then pulled away when they saw the skylight close. They looked back at Tom and Marco and walked closer, stopping near Star.
'Marco?!' They both thought in surprise.
Tom saw the skylight close, and he looked back down at Marco, his eyes glowing a dangerously bright red. He slowly but angrily walked up to him as Marco backed away and eventually stood up.
"That dance... was meant... FOR ME!" Tom roared as pillars of fire burst around the ballroom. Jackie widened her eyes in surprise. So did Levi, but he steeled back his gaze.
"Walk it out-" Brian tried to help, but was pushed away by the demon prince.
"NO BRIAN!" He yelled.
Marco only looked at him with a resigned gaze. He then took a karate stance.
"If this is what I had to do... then I'll pay the price for it." He said, ready to fight Tom.
Tom roared and levitated with his flames from his hands and feet... only to be stopped frozen in a block of ice by Star.
Star walked up to Tom's frozen form and used her wand's magic on the button on his shirt. From 53 days anger free, it turned to 0.
Star sighed, almost from anger and annoyance. "Let's go Marco." She said.
"Wait." Levi called out to her, causing her to turn to him, and so did Marco, who was about to follow.
"One last thing." He walked up to Tom. His right fist was covered in darkness energy. He knew that despite being frozen, he can still hear him.
"Tom... for what it's worth, you're a good friend. It's just that you have temper and control freak problems. I could've let the friendship between the three of us continue." He sighed, as if he has no other choice but to perform this action. "However, you hurt Star before, and you tried to use this special occassion to force Star to love you again, when she gave you a second chance. You two broke up for a reason, and you still tried everything you could, including forcing her into something she will resent you for forever. That, I can never forgive for a long time. That's what it will be if someone tries to hurt my best friend who's almost like a sister to me. Not only did you destroy your second chance with Star, you also destroyed your chance of reconciliation. Good gods, I really hope you won't be like your father, Tom."
He sent one really powerful darkness-infused punch towards his body, sending him crashing to the wall, breaking the ice and rendering him unconscious.
"Let's go." He said.
Before they left, Levi and Jackie looked at the demon pair they talked to earlier. They smiled at them. The demons gave them a thumbs up gesture. They blushed an even deeper shade. Levi and Jackie waved goodbye, and so did the demons as well.
"Best Blood Moon Ball, ever." He told his lover, turning to her.
"Love, this may be our only Blood Moon Ball, but you may be right. We may have just witnessed the best one in history, for sure." She said to him. They gazed at each other, smiled, and shared a kiss under the moonlight.
Back with our four, they had just arrived back at Star's balcony in Marco's house.
"Thanks for the ride." Star said as they exited the elevator carriage.
Once the four exited, the elevator carriage then left.
"We'll give you two some space. We know it's been a long night for you two. We'll be on the roof." Levi said.
"Wait, what?" Jackie asked before being pulled by Levi and sent up to the roof with him, leaving the two alone now.
Marco gave a sad smile at Star.
"Go ahead. Lay it all out on me." He said.
"With pleasure. You are just so infuriating!" Star began, throwing her shoes ay Marco, who caught them with ease.
"I tried, and I guess I failed miserably."
Star exasperatedly raised her arms in the air and pointed back at Marco.
"Damn right you failed! You don't trust me to do things by myself. I'm 15. I know how to handle a demon. My ex-boyfriend at that." She walked over and leaned on the balcony.
"I know you're looking out for me, but you have to let me figure things out on my own. I don't need a hero. I need a friend." She finished, emphasizing the last word.
Marco looked at her in both guilt and sadness. He leaned his back on the balcony, removing his mask.
"Sometimes... it just takes over, you know? The safe kid nature in me, I'm always concerned for my friends. Sometimes, I guess I just let things go too far, even though I knew the risks."
"Has this ever happened before?" The question made Marco pause.
"Let me think..." Marco thought long and hard to see if something like this had happened before.
"... I guess... I guess not. This is the first time this actually happened." Star looked at him. Marco stared back at her.
"Either way... I'm sorry for what I did. I should've trusted you." He said, feeling guilty. Star gave a small smile.
"Either way, Marco... I appreciate what you tried to do. But, sometimes, let me do things on my own, alright?"
"Okay, Star."
"Thanks."
After a few seconds of silence, Marco spoke up again.
"Star?" He called out.
"Yeah?" She answered.
"I know it's going to be strange, but while waiting for you, I heard voices. Specifically, about the Ball."
"What did it say?"
He then imitated the voice's words.
Star gained a knowing look. "That is strange."
"For some reason, it just compelled me to go."
"And it led to what happened up to now. It's okay, Marco."
Still, Marco was curious about one thing.
"Star, did I dance alright?"
"Did you dance alright? You were so good! I didn't think you could dance!" She took his hat and wore it on her head. His hair came out all ruffled.
They laughed. "Hat hair." They realized what they said.
"Whoa!"
"We both said-! The same thing-! Okay, stop that."
They gasped and jumped away from each other, covering their mouths. Star pointed her wand at Marco.
They eased up and laughed. When they stopped laughing and stared, the two suddenly jumped and hugged each other. Marco pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her waist. Star did the same around his neck.
"That was..."
"... sudden."
They didn't care, however. All they could do is bask in the closeness of their parnter and the light of the blood moon, snuggling closer.
At the same time they began conversing, Levi and Jackie sat on the roof, watching the blood moon. Jackie leaned towards him, resting her head on his shoulder.
"This night has been a whirlwind for me."
"I'll say. So that's how it's like in the underworld."
"I don't know what to say about Tom now. He was my friend, but now I feel that he just wasted his last chance. And in some weird way, Marco was right about him." Levi sadly said.
"He could've been a good friend. I just wish he get better. What did you mean when you said that you hoped that he won't become like his dad?" Jackie asked.
"His temperamental issues came from his dad, the king of the underworld. So it was probably inherited. He's had his good showings as a friend. I only wish the best for him now."
"I'm sure he'll be alright."
"I hope so." Deciding to switch topics, he spoke again.
"I feel really happy about that demon couple we talked with."
"I know, right? Those two were sweet. I hate that the demon talked bad about them. So what if they're aloof and attractive? They love each other, and that's what matters."
"Anyways, I didn't expect the dance at all."
"Neither did I. Still, the moon is just a legend, right?"
"I don't know. But... if it is real..." Jackie placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, giving him a smile.
"Levi... I don't mind if our souls are bound forever. I'm alright with it. We'll be there for each other, right?"
He smiled. "I guess you're right."
"The question, though, is are you?"
He looked up at the moon and back to Jackie. Almost then and there she knew his answer.
"I wouldn't mind in the slightest." She immediately hugged him. They stared at each other deeply.
"Jackie... you're so beautiful." He said, tucking her hair.
"I feel so lost in you, Levi." She said back.
They leaned in, their noses touching, but they suddenly pulled away.
Eyes wide, they blushed even deeper shades of red.
"Were we...?"
"...I think we were about to."
Regardless, they embraced once more.
"Don't ever leave me, Levi, promise?" She asked him.
Levi looked worried about her question, but he pushed his doubts aside.
"I...I promise."
They then heard a call from below. They looked down to see Star and Marco looking up at them.
"C'mon you two! We got nachos to celebrate today!" Star said. The two grinned and jumped down. Together the four went back into the room, ready to eat.
On a hill overlooking Star's house, the same person from many times before stared at the moon.
"The Blood Moon Ball... a special occassion that happens every six hundred and sixty seven years... and it picked two pairs." He said aloud.
He smiled. "You have someone with you now, Levi. However, the time grows even nearer. Until we meet, Levi." He disappeared in the same void portal, leaving no trace of him ever appearing.
The light of the moon shined brighter.
From the underworld, however...
"Marco Diaz..." Tom growled, having regained consciousness, his anger returning.
"You are going to fucking pay for this." His eyes glowed a very dangerous red.
From a few spaces away, Brian sadly looked at his friend and client/patient.
'Tom... I tried to do my best to help. I'll do all I can to really make sure you get better. Levi, Marco, Star, Jackie... you're my only hope in making sure he gets on the right track. Sure I sometimes had problems as I tried to help, but it's beacuse you're my friend that I still stayed to help you.'
'It's only a matter of time before he tries to get revenge. I hope the four of you will be prepared for it.'
AN: Probably the most fun I had rewriting an episode. The Blood Moon Ball's probably my most favorite episode of season 1, only second to Storm the Castle and tied with St. Olga's. Including pulling a late-nighter, on a night before a school day, no less. However, as I said, I loved this episode, so I decided to at least finish it before Tuesday, thus the all-nighter. So I guess it came a bit early.
I'm sure no one expected this to arrive a lot sooner. Or the fact that this would kickstart Year 2. Or I could be wrong.
Now, this one obviously had a LOT of ship teases between the two pairs. However, trust me, and just be patient. This doesn't mean our pairings are confirmed. However, this is a vital one to which how they'll see their partners differently since then.
One change I'm making (thus, somewhat diverting it from canon) is Tom. He's very pissed off now, and he'll now do all he can to get his revenge on Marco. It'll be painful. So much that it would make what he had planned in Mr. Candle Cares seem tame, if not tame already for me.
So, please review below. As I've said time and time again, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this one.
Now for some review responses.
Chance G (is it alright if I just shorten it to that?): Honestly, I gave it all I could to send home the emotions. And Ludo is just awesome as a bad guy now. Definitely improved a lot. And thanks for saying it was emotional.
Guest Sorta: Eh, I like canon Jackie, but for the sake of this fic, I changed it up. But I'm glad you love my version of Jackie.
starcoshipper13: Thanks. I was a bit doubting myself on how the chapter would go.
Thanks for reading, everyone. Until then.