Hello fanfiction! author here, feeling much better and read to write more stories! thank you for every favorite, follow and review. they mean so much to me and i love you all!
A special thanks to H mae- it was bit cruel but alas the things i must do for Starco. i think Marco was plagued by the rare "I'm so scared I'm just going to be smooth because i've got nothing to lose!" type of scared. i will admit my sickness kinda threw me off but i am still mostly happy about how it came out. i am really glad you liked the starco jarco fight too much fun to write. draw it draw it draw it if you have time and want too. i'll get the reformer.
SVTFOEfanatic- thank you so much for your concern and kind words. don't worry i don't get too wound up over these requests but my musician side takes over. go big or go home! turns out marco has his own brand of magic. and no Star did not do so out of jealousy, just a happy accident. Guardians of the starco may or may not be out this week. i'll have more details ahead. and i figured Star would be so confused, she would want to call the experts of earth to help her out ergo their friends. When life gives me lemons, i turn the lemons into explosive lemons and shove them back in life's face.
goldenflash thank you so much for your review and my secret is this (whispers) I really love writing and writing for you wonderful readers. i am so glad you liked this chapter and trust me, i have a whole vault of AU's planned. i hope you enjoy this AU.
xboxrica- thank you so much for liking it and for the review. means a lot to me!
Devious Angel- I am the captain of the Starco ship and i shall sail this ship until it sails itself and i shall defeat any threat to my OTP. ANY THREAT!
Aleprettycat- I am very sorry, i really shouldn't have assumed. and i deeply apologize. honestly the other story was more an experiment and a writing challenge but i liked the way it came out. I am very happy for your reviews and thank you so much for leaving one on each chapter. King Diaz and Queen Star. one day soon i am thinking of either crossing them over or doing an AU of it and Star P.H.D is too cute. i could not resist giving her glasses. don't worry, i will never sink the Starco ship. just read the next chapter. trust me its all good and sorry again.
ultragamerkitty- i would love to see the practice date be an episode. it sounds like something that Star would do for Marco right? thank you so much for the review and i hope you keep enjoying the stories. Starco for the win!
Shevy- you! i am very very honored and happy you enjoyed my story! i knew i had to tease you reads with an almost kiss that way the real kiss would knock your socks off! 15 starco points for you. 15 starco points for everyone! EVERYONE! even if you don't support the ship, everyone gets starco points.
lost- I was a bit on the sick side when i wrote this but i didn't want to wait too long because i came up too many good jokes for it so i ran the risk. i admit it felt a bit rush but my sickness is no excuse for that. as for character development there's not much to Jackie so i made my own stuff. i hope season two really fleshes everyone out. well i have my off days but i am happy you still enjoyed it and 8.5 still is an awesome score! YES!
IDC1314- of course i enjoy your work. it's star and you do very good work! keep it up Starco for the win and here's another chapter for you!
thewookie- I think Janna really has it bad for Marco. given she's willing to steal his house keys and seemed really flirty with him. hmm maybe i should have jackie and janna trying to steal him away from Star. thanks for your review
and of course my guests reviwers- we all know star would take one glance at the dress and turn it pink and since i don't have worry about publication, i can have Marco fight actual video game characters. I LOVE Scott Pilgrim but thanks to copyright laws, we couldn't have alot of really cool video game references i mean i know the bands are references to old games but still, i would've loved to see a Mario kart evil ex battle...i'm going to write that down
So a few announcements, i will try to update several stories including this one, if i miss you, Starco academy, trying to get the Scott pilgrim story on its own with a new chapter and if i have time, Guardians of the starco. Sickness be darn!
So we're going back to the canon universe because i was working on this one along with the practice date one before i got sick. Takes place after the blood moon ball because I love that episode and it's a great starting point for stories. Lately Marco's been really busy and can't go out with Star. Star doesn't think much of it but starts to feel very off and weird. Dimension hopping isn't the same but what is missing?
Let's see. H mae colored in her drawing of the blood moon. very well done and it looks amazing. check out her work and other starco artists at her tumblr hains-mae I draw cartoons 13 14 on instagram has some more drawings up including a steven universe style Marco/star fusion and chibi star. or doll star, not sure but its pretty cute. On the writer side of the coin we have Diaz family road trip by unluckywrites, star vs the finale by skleero and you're my favorite by finnjr63. go check them out if you get a chance
thank you so much for all the love and support, you readers are the best and keep being amazing, great people! thank you for every review, favorite and follow! enjpy and i own nothing!
Star Butterfly, the magical princess from another dimension, could not believe what she was hearing. Well, more like was actively choosing to ignore what was coming out of her best friend's mouth. Not out of spite or some mean spirited intent. No, simply because he must not be aware of what he was saying, he clearly misunderstood the words he was speaking. It was clear to Star that somewhere between his head of well kept brown hair and his lips something was mixing up the words coming out of his mouth. They arrived at the Diaz household after a long day of school and when Star mentioned going dimension hopping, he did not response the way she thought he would
"So..." Star muttered slowly "We're going to dimension hopping today right?"
Marco let out an exasperated sigh "Star, I told you I can't. I have something to do today"
Star pouted cutely which caused Marco's cheek to be dusted with a lovely shade of red.
"But Maaaaaaaaarco!" She whined "Why not?"
Marco tugged at his collar nervously, something Star picked up but couldn't decipher its meaning. Maybe it was some weird Earth gesture for not willing to answer a question. Which deeply offended Star.
"I have something to do" he answered, his voice controlled and neutral
Star's eyes narrowed, unsure if she was liking this new, evasive Marco. Normally he was very open, telling Star everything. Now, he was secretive, clearly hiding something from his best friend.
Star huffed angrily, turning away from her Mar...best amigo.
"Star it's not that I don't want to. I just really can't. Not today."
Marco's voice was soft with just a mix of sadness thrown in. Star's fury melted away upon hearing those words. She could tell he really wanted to go but he just couldn't manage it today. After all this was his home dimension and life stops for no one be it magical princess, karate safe kid or laser puppy that was currently chewing on his slippers.
"Oh..." Star let out a disappointed sigh "okay Marco."
Star turned to face him when she felt his hand grip her shoulder gently, giving her an apologetic smile that was too cute.
The doorbell rang but Marco made no effort to break off his contact with Star. He wanted to make sure how much he really wanted to go. He hated to see Star in any bad mood, be it sad or mad.
Marco remembered how desperate he felt that day Oskar failed to call Star all those months ago. How he keenly he could feel her sorrow rolling off of her, affecting the entire household throughout the night. How idea after idea, failure met with failure spurred him to try harder, to think outside the box. All he wanted in that moment was to see her smile once more.
He openly admitted he was confused how attuned he was to Star. And that was before the Blood Moon Ball. After that night, the Stardar (as he fondly called it) became near perfect, accurate about 90% of the time. There was those rare moments were Star was unreadable but sometimes that's just how life was. Nothing personal. And it seemed the reverse was true as well. Marco really had to keep a lid down on his emotions around Star as she effortlessly managed to pinpoint why he was anxious, why he was down or sad or depressed. She could even tell when he was lying to her even about the subtlest things. Except the times he was messing with her, those eluded the princess though Marco suspected it was because she secretly enjoyed his pranks.
"Marco!" Mrs. Diaz called from downstairs "Your friend is here!"
"Thanks mom!" Marco called back, finally freeing Star's shoulder from his touch as he made his way passed her.
"Friend?" Star muttered cautiously "is it Ferguson...Alfonso?"
a flash of irritation surged through the princess. The idea of Marco ditching her to hang out Ferguson or Alfonso really hurt her. She thought they were all great friends!
"No, no Star" Marco answered as quickly possible, picking up on Star's emotion at once "It's..."
Star's eyes widen as her lips formed an O shape, Jackie Lynn Thomas smiling and waving happily in the doorway.
"Hey Star"
"Hiya Jackie!" Star returned the gesture with the same energy Jackie showed her.
Now everything made sense.
And Star could feel the guilty tug of shame pulling at her.
Marco was clearly trying to ask Jackie to the dance this Friday. It was the first event of the school year and while Star and Marco promised to go with each other as friends in case they didn't ask someone out, they also vowed to attempt to ask their respective crushes. And it looks like Marco was first up to bat.
"Hey Marco"
Marco flushed uncomfortably but not to the usual degree he often did with Jackie. Star could feel a calm determination amongst raging storm of anxiety and fear that was Marco Diaz.
"H-Hey Jackie. Re-Ready to go?" Marco coughed, trying to clear his dry throat.
Jackie gave Marco an endearing grin "Yeah, all set for the mall."
Marco nodded quickly, reaching for his bike helmet he left by the door when he came home from school.
Marco could feel a predatory vibe coming from Star who remained silent and still behind him, just waiting for him to turn around and say good bye.
And when he did, he nearly jumped out of his skin. Star stared at him with a knowing and up to no good glint in her eyes, a sly smirking grin dancing on her lips.
"B-Bye Star. See you later"
"Byeeeeee Marco!" she replied in a teasing tone "Haaaaave fun! Well not too much fun!"
Marco's blush became even worse as he quickly pushed Jackie out the door, barely giving the girl any time to say goodbye to Star before slamming the door shut behind them.
Star raced over to the window, her smile growing wider each passing second as she watched Marco on his bike and Jackie on her skateboard riding side by side together. Star was caught off guard when Marco turned back in her direction and gave her a bright smile before nearly crashing into a pole. Star let out a series of unstoppable giggles, feeling bad about laughing at Marco but admitting the cute way his face scrunched up in surprise was just too much for her.
Star could feel all sense of ease and joy drain out of her as the pair disappeared into the distance. She felt very strange about Marco deciding to hang out with Jackie but she had no idea why. It was for love, she should be happy for her best friend not...well she really didn't know how to describe it.
Star bit her lip thoughtfully, unsure what she was going to do now. Her hearts transformed into glowing lightbulbs upon realizing the time for her to step up to the plate is now. She had no idea what stepping up the plate meant or why there was even a plate to step up to but Marco assured her it was more of a saying about getting ready for your big chance rather having anything to do with a plate.
"I need Marco's phone!" Star shouted to no one, lifting her hands in victory while she raced up the stairs, la la laing and bouncing as she violently kicked Marco's door open, her eyes glancing every which way, seeking out the object she needed most.
"Oh...right" Star frowned, her lightbulbs turning into rainclouds once she realized Marco must've taken it with him. Now she couldn't call Oskar to ask him out Friday.
Star shrugged, her hearts returning to her face. She'll just have to call when Marco came back or tomorrow. the dance was still a few days away and she was almost, kinda, maybe a little hopeful that Oskar would say yes to her, record or no not withstanding.
"Now to continue my ongoing battle against my eternal foe, the one that seeks to destroy my very meaning of life and my sacred vow" Star whispered, a rare and serious look covering her normally carefree face. Star took a deep breath, staring off to the distance while flipping on Marco's desk fan, the air blowing her hair in a dramatic and solemn fashion. "have at thee boredom!"
20 minutes later
"aaaaand I'm losing!" Star shouted angrily, the girl laid on her bed, taking up as much space as possible as her bright blonde hair sprawled in every direction like rays from the sun. "Ugh. I want to go dimension hopping but I don't want to go without Marco!"
Star sat up, frowning at her own words. Marco was her best friend but it wasn't like they were attached at the hip. She has gone dimension hopping plenty of times before she ever met him and surely it would make no difference now. She'll just make it up to him later.
She shook her head. What was she talking about? She didn't have to make it up to him. He may have left her for a chance at Jackie, something Star was completely okay with (No really, she was) but it wasn't personal. She'll just have a quick adventure on her own and come back before Marco realized she left without him.
Star gripped the scissors tightly, unsure why she was remotely feeling guilty. True the two had been nearly inseparable when since she got here but they were their own people and can do their own things.
And with that solid yet somehow flimsy reasoning in her mind, she ripped open the fabric of reality and leapt in, fully intending to bask in the thrill she always got when she explored new dimensions.
Later that night.
Marco trudged inside his home, dead tired from a long day and he still had a few more days like this until the big event.
He leaned wearily against the door, gripping a shopping bag tightly while taking a moment of rest before Star came bouncing down the stairs, ambushing him with one of her warm, bone crushing hugs.
"I'm home!" Marco called out and while his parents responded happily, the lack of response from Star was worrisome. She always replied be it grunt, cheer or more often than not, previously mentioned bone shattering hugs.
But today? Nothing. Maybe she was much more angry than he originally thought. He was sure Star was indeed okay that he went out with Jackie but deep, void like feeling that was bubbling in his stomach was almost too much to bear. It was almost like Star didn't exist any...
He heard the tearing of fabric and the swirling rush of a portal being opened and the void that settled within him was filled to the brim with tiredness and slight contentment.
Marco tiredly made his way up stairs, hiding the bag in his closet before making his way to Star's room.
Before he could even knock, Star pulled open the door, a playful and joyous smile on her face sending a blissful feeling spreading throughout Marco's body.
"MARCO!" She cried cheerfully, grabbing and holding onto his arm tightly as she practically dragged him inside her room, looking like she was ready to just pounce on him.
Marco chuckled softly as Star wrapped her arms around his waist, holding tightly like he was going to float off into the sky.
"How was your day Star?"
"Greeeeeat!" Star nodded enthusiastically, unsure why where this rush of energy was coming from but enjoying it all the same.
"Did you go dimension hopping today?"
"Yep, yep, yep!" Star said rapidly "I had so much fun!"
Marco looked at her, unconvinced she was telling the truth but not really concerned. Star wouldn't lie to him and he was glad she managed to have fun without him
"Where did you go?"
Star led him to the bed, patting it eagerly. Marco took a sit, turning to face the beautiful princess who was just in the best mood possible.
Marco flushed, burying his thoughts with anything and everything that did not involve Star in any way,
"I went to this dimension called Quest Easy"
Marco raised an eyebrow at the strange description "Quest Easy?"
"Yeah, it's a dimension that's like quest buy but without the deadly traps."
Marco slapped his face "Why didn't we just go there then?!"
Star laughed at his nativity. Expert on earth but not so much anywhere else. Not that it was his fault.
"Are you kidding me? Do you know how expensive Quest Easy? It's an easier Quest Buy which means they sell more often and they raise their prices because they know a lot of people are too scared to deal with Quest Buy! Besides, QB is much more fun"
Marco gave Star a fond smile, lost in his memory while Star felt her cheeks warm at the sight of him.
"So what did you do there?"
Star waved it off like nothing "walk around, talked to some people, ate a bagel! I LOVE BAGELS! They are so good! And you can't find them anywhere else!"
Marco snorted in disbelief causing Star to frown in his direction.
"Hey what's the..."
"Star, we have bagels here!"
Star's widened in wonder. Marco could practically feel her bright blue eyes piercing his soul and trying to drag out his secrets.
"Earth knows how superheat fallen stardust and smosh it in between two perfectly cooked Zork legs?! And you never told me!"
"Er...never mind. Wrong bagel"
Star peered at him curiously "There's another bagel? You must show me!"
"okay Star, okay I will"
Marco's grin nearly paralyzed Star with happiness. What was with her? It's only been a few hours since she last saw Marco and she was acting like it's been years.
"Oh! How did your date go with Jackie? Did you kisssssss her?" Star nudged him with her elbow jokingly but she could feel her stomach churn uneasily at the idea of Marco kiss anyone other than her.
Star could feel her brain screech to a halt, thought after thought crashing into each other messy, glorious pile of confusion. The "Why would I the mall with Jackie?" mixed up with the "He went to kiss him?" which further caused her brain to rack itself, totally lost what was going on.
"Date with Jackie?" Marco answered slowly, aware that something dramatic changed in Star, enough to throw her (and consequently him) off balance "Oh! No, she just needed some help with her homework. It wasn't a date at all. Well not a real one anyway."
Those words kick started Star's brain back into action, allowing her to regain the balance of normality.
"Oh" Star muttered, unsure if she could trust her own wild thoughts from sidelining her again "Did you at least ask her out for Friday?"
Marco gazed back at his best friend, confused by what exactly she meant "huh? Oh! N-no. I...I didn't."
Star nodded in agreement, understanding that he probably wasn't ready to ask Jackie out yet especially since she came to him for help though she admitted there was something Marco was hiding. Probably how nervous he was.
Star ignored the sickening feeling she now got whenever she put the words Jackie and Marco together, pulling her best friend out the door "You are tired, you need your rest Marco!"
Marco opened his mouth to argue but all that came out was a long, tiring yawn.
Marco smiled sheepishly under the glance of the princess and quickly hurried off to his room before Star decided to see if she could teleport him with her wand.
Star's smile faded the moment Marco left the room, the disappointment of the day finally sinking in.
She wasn't completely lying when she said she had fun. She...just didn't have as much fun as usual.
She had never been to Quest Easy before and she had to admit it's similarity to Quest Buy was a little too much for her to consider it a completely new experience.
She spent the most of the time wandering the endless rows of the dimension, eyes briefly lighting up at all the new items she never saw before before slinking into the unshakeable feeling something was missing but she couldn't place her finger on it. It was about the same as usual. Just Star with her pair of dimensional scissors.
She did have fun. But she wished she had more.
Tomorrow, She told herself, changing into her sleep dress and snuggling under her blankets, tomorrow I'll have more fun! It is Thursday after all.
Star stared directly at Marco as the school bell rang, unable to believe what she was hearing. Clearly Marco did not know what he was saying. The actual words he meant to say were getting lost somewhere in between his thick skull, his light brown eyes and his oddly distracting mouth.
"I must've misheard you Marco...it sounds like you just said no to dimension hopping."
Marco shifted nervously, closing his locker to give himself a moment of reprieve from the really intense looking Star.
"I can't. Jackie needs help today..."
Star frowned, trying hold in the fact that the J word was really starting to bother her now. It was really unfair of her to assume Marco was free to just go dimension jumping with her and it was clear he was filled to the brim with nervousness, his attempts at asking Jackie out admirable but clearly not getting him very far. But still Star couldn't help but seriously be annoyed at Jackie. She had no idea why but she just was.
"Okay Marco, I understand."
Star's eyes softened when Marco wrapped his arms around her body, causing her skin to feel warm and electrified at her best friend's action. Marco wasn't much of a hugger so this simple gesture wasn't one she was used to. But she wanted to be.
Marco pulled away from her, a timid smile on his face that was devastating to her anger, melting it away like it never existed before.
"I'll bring you home some strawberry shortcake you like, okay Star?"
Star pursed her lips, Marco trying his hardest to focus on her face rather than her baby blue eyes or the pinkness of those lips.
"Okay Marco!"
when she gave him that big smile, Marco couldn't help but mirror it back towards her.
"Bye Star"
Star waved excitedly to the departing Marco, stopping at once when he couldn't see her anymore.
She let out a soft sigh, trying not to let dissatisfaction flow through her body.
"Hey Star!"
She whirled around to the smiling faces of Ferguson and Alfonso.
"Oh hey guys" She gave them a casual wave before double taking, shouting loudly at the sight of them "GUYS! What are you up to?"
Ferguson and Alfonso glanced at each other "Going to the mall, wanna come with?"
"YES!" Star cheered, grateful there were other people to keep her occupied other than Marco.
"So where's Marco?" Ferguson asked. He wasn't used to seeing Star all by herself. Every time he saw her Marco was always somewhere nearby.
"Oh, he's helping Jackie with her homework. Trying to ask her to the dance on Friday"
Alfonso and Ferguson shared a concerned look, one that did not go unnoticed by Star.
"Guys?"
the boys squirmed uncomfortably under Star's stare, unsure if they were blowing some big secret for Marco.
"Umm Star" Alfonso began slowly "Jackie's here, studying in the library. By herself."
Star's face was unreadable, her brain alive with countless thoughts. None of which made sense.
"Star, are you okay?"
Star felt hurt. She felt angry. She felt happy. She even felt like she was being unreasonable. Marco must've had a good reason for lying to her and she would just have to trust his reasoning.
"Let's go to the mall. I want to see one of those Earth dress stores. I need ideas for Friday!" She managed to let out cheerfully.
Ferguson and Alfonso agreed, unable to see past Star's concealed warring emotions.
At the Mall
Star laughed and giggled at Ferguson's jokes, nearly choking on her drink when Alfonso jumped in with a story about how Marco once opened his mouth to talk to Jackie in 4th grade only to be pelted in the face by Janna with a dodgeball.
"haha a dodgeball?" Star questioned, still chortling but wanting to know exactly what a dodgeball was.
"It's a big rubber red ball you throw at people." Ferguson explained.
"What do you do with it?"
"You dodge it Star. If you get hit, you are out of the circle and the game!"
Star laughed even louder
"It's like a battle, you never get distract in the middle of a fight."
The boys agreed before something caught their attention. Ferguson nudged Alfonso, pointing directly behind Star in a shock awed.
"Is that...Marco?"
Star's eyes perked up at the sound of her best friend's name.
"What is he doing?" Alfonso questioned, peering closer while he lifted his glasses up and down to make sure he was properly seeing what his eyes were telling him.
"It is! Dude, is he hitting on that girl? That isn't Jackie?!"
Star glowered angrily "What! Marco hit a girl? I'll teach him about..."
Alfonso and Ferguson grabbed the rising Star, quickly begging her to listen before she did anything rash.
"Whoa, whoa STAR! On Earth hitting on means flirting, you know flirting?"
Star nodded in understanding, realizing how quickly she jumped to the worst conclusion. This was Marco and he would never dream of hurting anyone that wasn't a monster.
"Wow" Ferguson murmured with hero worship "He is good."
Alfonso nodded in agreement "Totally. She's eating it up."
Star giggled. She loved Ferg and Alfonso but they weren't exactly on the up and up about dating and flirting. While Star admitted Marco wasn't quite like them, she also admitted a flirty Marco was just not a thing given his timid nature.
"Guys, I'm sure it's not what it looks..." Star told them calmly as she turned around and fell into the shocked awe as the two boys across from her.
It was exactly what it looked like.
There he was, her best friend, dressed not in his usual attire but looking very cute in some sort of white, long sleeved collared shirt, a little red bowtie round his neck and black slacks in front of those island stands that weren't connected to any wall of the mall.
He was laughing loud, his face bright red as he scratched the back of his head that was way too endearing to Star. The girl across from him was laughing just as loud as he was, her long brown hair tucked under a baseball cap, twisted in a ponytail that slid out the opening in the back of the hat. Her hazel eyes paying close attention to him as if he was the most interesting thing that ever happened. She leaned forward on her elbows, hands cradling her head, infatuation sparkling in every second of her gaze towards Marco.
Rage and hurt flooded Star and she tried her hardest not to snap her wand in half.
"Good for him. It's rare to seem him so at ease with a girl you know?"
Ferguson's words snapped her out of it. Why was she being like this? This is good for Marco's self confidence. The only girl he was remotely comfortable with was herself and while it made her feel special, she shouldn't be so angry at the idea that he was gaining so much needed self esteem. He was a great guy. He just needed to believe it.
Still the sight was really bothering Star.
"Hey, you guys want to go to another dimension?" Star turned to the other two quickly, pulling out her scissors without actually waiting for any input from them.
"Sure Star!"
"Sounds fun!"
Star grinned happily. This time she'd have fun. She was going with other people this time.
The trio appeared in a vast, towering city that was chrome plated, every inch of it the sliver, reflective metal. The night sky held no stars and was just a massive wall of darkness.
"Wow, what dimension is this?" Ferguson asked in wonder.
Star felt uneasy about this place "I don't know...this wasn't what I was aiming for..."
"This is Chrome city and you humans must be destroyed! No humans allowed!" a cold, metallic voice echoed around them, seemingly from the city walls themselves.
There was a loud woosh, the scrapping of metallic walls grinding against each other as several openings from the walls, floors and even inside a flowerpot.
Tiny, childlike claw hands reached out from the shadows, wildly grabbing at the air
"Wait wait! I'm Mewnan!" Star cried out, the tiny, waist high black humanoid robots climbing out in impossible numbers
"Oh..." The voice sounded sheepish, even a little embarrassed. "Well that changes everything"
The robots all glanced at once to the tallest tower, their two eye optics giving the subtle expression that they were quite confused at what was going on.
"DOUBLE KILL THE MEWNAN!"
The tiny robots let out a cheer, surging forward, their killing intent obvious.
"Ferguson look out!" Star shouted, smash her wand ontop of the robot that tried to pin her arms down.
Ferguson let out a panicked cry, running in between two robots, narrowly avoiding their outstretched arms.
Star let out a frustrated groan, blasting several of the approaching robots with exploding cupcakes before making her way to Ferguson who was ineffectively slapping his hands against the robot who cornered him.
"Hiyah!" Star cried, kicking the metal foe away from Ferguson "Ferguson, why aren't you fighting? Use your karate skills!"
Ferguson scoffed in annoyance "I am not Marco. Not everyone on Earth knows how to fight like that!"
"Really?" Star murmured, randomly carnal blasting into a thick crowd of approaching robots. It never occurred to her that Marco's fighting skills were not as common as she thought. True she's never seen others use karate but she always assumed it was the basic line of Earth defense and thus well known knowledge.
"Oh dear" Alfonso cried, two robots standing ontop of one another shoulders, effortlessly holding up the boy like he was as light as a feather.
"Alfonso!" Star cried before Ferguson let out a panicked cry. She turned around and let out a frustrated growl.
Ferguson was held down by a dozen of so robots, wildly slapping at them while clearly forgetting how well that worked out last time.
"Ferguson! Okay Marco I need you to..."Star turned to face Marco, fully expecting to be ready to fight at her side only to find herself staring at empty air.
She bit her lip, swinging her wand back and forth. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so exposed, so alone in battle. She always fought with Marco at her side and she never realized how much of an impact he made. She never had to guess what to do next or even had to watch her back. Marco always did and she returned the favor.
The thrill and joy of battle she normally felt was replaced with an impending sense of doom. Neither of the other two could fight and she was forced not only to protect the wand and herself but also Ferguson and Alfonso. Marco hardly needed to be watched over and she could easily jump in whenever he became overwhelmed or needed a moment of rest.
Star needed to think fast, the sea of robots closing in, their claws gleaming sharply under the light less sky.
"Magnetic repel wave!" she screamed, placing her wand against the metallic floor, an invisible wave pushing all the robots in random directions
"Ferguson, Alfonso here now!"
The two boys raced over as Star cut open the portal as fast as she could, shoving her friends in before leaping in after them.
The trio tumbled back to Earth, the food court buzzing alive with their sudden departure and arrival.
Star laid there for a moment, staring at the ceiling in defeat.
"Why isn't dimension hopping fun anymore?
"Star?"
a familiar looking hand loomed over her, offering to help her to her feet.
Star took Marco's hand, finding comfort and safety in it as Marco hauled her to her feet.
"Star are you okay?" Marco wasted no time, hugging her tightly
Star let out a sigh of relief as she wrapped her arms to embrace him "Yeah. I'm okay Marco."
Star closed her eyes for a moment, trying to figure why Marco was dressed in a weird outfit, why he was talking to some random girl, why he lied to her.
She just wanted to be here in his arms for the moment
Star's eyes shot open when she heard the familiar sound of Oskar's keytar echoing through the mall, the others covering their ears jokingly, their eyes sealed tight in mock pain.
Star knew they were playing around Marco did no such thing, his body getting tense under Star's but she knew he was just worried.
Star pulled away from Marco, surprised when he hesitatingly easing his grip on her.
"Star?"
"If you can ask someone out on a date, I can ask Oskar out!"
Marco could feel his nerves getting worse, the look on Star's face making him realize he had less time than he thought.
"Star, wait..." Marco muttered shyly but she was already gone, having spotted Oskar with little effort and began marching her way towards him.
Marco reached out to stop her before letting his arm slack. This was her choice and he had to accept it.
Star took calming breaths as she made her way over to Oskar, the racing her of heart actually not as bad as when she held Marco. Somehow her best friend made her more nervous than her crush was but that was a blessing in disguise right now.
Star stood anxiously in front of the bad boy, trying to work up her courage before realizing the dance was just tomorrow. Seriously how did she lose track of that?
Star shook her head. She was Star Butterfly and she was going to ask out Marco.
Before that thought could really sink in, Oskar turned to her, bangs covering his eyes as he muttered with a slight grin "S'up"
Star let out a dreamy sigh, more out of reflexive than actual intent "Hiiii Oskar. so...I...was wondering if you wanted to go to the dance tomorrow with me?"
Star looked forward, hands held together, eyes pleading but somewhere deep in the pit of her stomach, she prayed for some reason that he'd say no.
"I'd love to"
Star let out a cheer of victory, rising her hand into the air in triumph
"But I can't"
Star's good mood deflated, not as bad as she thought but still a bit.
"W-why?" she stammered out, unsure what she did wrong. Was it her hair? Did she ask too quickly? Maybe she stepped too close to him
"I'm like banned from all school events. Couldn't go even if I like wanted to"
"Oh" While Star was saddened at the news she couldn't go with Oskar, the idea of going with Marco really helped soften the blow. She may not go with Oskar but she was going with the next best person. Still disappointment cut through her body deeply.
"I understand. Thank you Oskar"
he simply nodded, going back to playing his song as she slowly made her way back to the others.
She knew something was wrong when she realized she couldn't feel Marco's emotions. It was like he disappeared from the face of the Earth even though he was standing just in front of her. Still she was numbed from her own pain to pay it much attention.
"Congrats Star, you asked out Oskar!' Marco said, the joy in his voice not sounding quite like his normal cheerful attitude.
Star was still dazed from the rejection to properly notice "Well yeah, who else was I going to go with?"
Her eyes widened, a deep sense of hurt and pain coming from her best friend once she realized she said the wrong thing.
"oh" Marco muttered softly, his voice laced with a heavy wounded emotion "Right, you wouldn't want to go with me because Oskar's the only one"
Alfonso and Ferguson glanced at each other, slowly slipping under the table and crawling their way out. This was about to get intense.
Star could feel her terror rising, waving her hands desperately in an attempt to pacify Marco "Wait, Marco I didn't...Oskar said he...
"He'd take you." Marco replied, short and to the point "Got it. Listen Star I got to go do something."
Anger flashed through Star "oh sure, go ask out the cashier girl! You've been lying to me so you can talk to her! Why couldn't you just tell me?"
"Cashier? What Cashier?" Marco opened his mouth to say more before gently closing it.
And he left, without saying another word, straight into a nearby store, not at all glancing at the cashier girl who was trying to get his attention.
Suddenly Star felt shameful at her actions. Why did she explode like that? Would did she feel the coiling snake of jealousy rise up and cause her to bite off her date to the dance? Well former date.
"Star?" a voice called gently from behind her.
Star turned around, staring into the face of Jackie Lynn Thomas
"Oh...hey Jackie"
"Star, are you okay?"
Star nodded, trying to fight back the tears in her eyes.
The lightbulbs graced her face replacing her hearts as she realized something. She found a way to make it up to Marco.
"Jackie! Are you going to the dance tomorrow?"
Jackie shook her head "No, I mean I wanted to but..."
"Great!" Star cut her off, moving forward and scaring the girl just a little bit.
"Look Star, I was hoping to go with a guy. Not as friends..."
"No no no I'm not asking for me!" Star's eyes were wild and resolute, she had to make it up to Marco. She had too! "Would you go with the dance with Marco?"
Jackie look genuinely surprised as if the idea of going with Marco never crossed her mind. Star began biting on her wand nervously, mentally nudging Jackie to cooperate before realizing she might've made a mistake. What if Marco had already asked the cashier. Wait if he already had a date to the...
"Did Marco change his mind about going with me?"
"Huh?"
Jackie felt uneasy under Star's confused but intense stare "Well yeah. I asked him a few days ago but he said he was going with you to the dance"
Star could feel her heart warm and beat happily at the idea of going with Marco to the dance. "B-but I thought..."
"He told me he really wanted to take you to the dance but he was nervous how'd you take it, so he decided to throw out that if neither of you could find a date, he would go with you. You know how nervous and scared Marco can be. Probably couldn't handle the idea of you rejecting him"
"B-but I saw him talking to you..."
Jackie looked surprised "Oh that. He needed help. My uncle owns a dress shop here at the mall so I introduced them. Marco made a deal that he would work at the mall for a few days for this dress you mentioned you wanted. He really wanted to make your first school dance special, regardless of who you went with."
Star thought long and hard, the memory eluding her until she noticed the fancy writing upon the stores sign.
Star remembered now. It was a month ago when she first learned about the dance. She dragged Marco dress shopping. She really would've liked to buy a dress from Earth as to fit in better but she felt bad asking for the Diaz's who gave her so much already, so creating one was the next best bet. Then she saw it, the most beautiful dress she'd ever seen. She couldn't help but practically drool over it. Then she noticed the price and simply walked away. She hadn't thought of it since.
Apparently Marco had.
"I messed up big time..." Star muttered sadly, the light bulbs on her face once more "hey Jackie, does Marco already have the dress?"
Later that night.
Marco opened the door to his house, letting out a sigh, not willing to announce his presence to the rest of the house hold. Not yet.
Marco felt immensely guilty at how he treated Star. It wasn't her fault he was so...unimpressive that she didn't want to go with him. That she liked Oskar. That she could have fun in other dimensions without him.
He depressingly made his way to his room, glancing with a grief-stricken stare towards Star's door before opening his own.
"Marco!" Star's startled voice cried out from within his bedroom.
Marco couldn't believe his eyes. It was clear the transformation his room had undergone was result of countless hours of hard work and dedication. By hand.
The room was full colorful streamers raining down from the ceiling. The lights were dimmed, giving the room a cozy and romantic feeling. There a small disco ball spinning lazily in the middle of the room, basking the two in a sea of multicolored lights. A soft song played in the background.
And there, standing on a small step stool, was Star. She gave him a shy, nervous smile as she made her way down. Her hair was done in long, curly ringlets that framed her face perfectly with her crown sitting on the top of her head.
But the biggest surprise of the night was the fact the dress she was wearing. It was the one Marco was currently working to pay off.
It was a ball gown. The upper half of the dress was a blue and white with an intricate pattern. The lower half was a light pink skirt that flowed all the way down to her ankles, some familiar looking white gloves and boots with a heart on them reminding him of another dance.
"You found the...umm..." Marco looked down in embarrassment. Now he didn't have anything to surprise her with.
Star made her way over to her best friend, all this hard work giving her a lot of time to think and realize her feelings about the boy in front of her.
"You know I lied to you Marco" Star admitted.
Marco stared up at her and Star resisted the urge to giggle at how cute he looked. She did turn bright red which was cloaked under the cover of the dim room. The little red bowtie, collared white shirt and black slacks were really too much for her to not coo over.
"Lied about what?"
Star let out a sigh "The dimension hopping. Both times I went without you. The first I just felt lonely. It was fun but...it wasn't as fun as it usually was. The second time I was so distracted I missed my target and had to fight off robots while saving Ferguson and Alfonso."
Star was surprised when Marco embraced her, the warm glowing feeling her heart pound happily in response.
"I'm sorry Star, are you okay? I didn't know that's where you came from. Oh man I should've..."
Star placed a gloved hand on his lips, causing both to blush.
"I'm fine Marco but I realized now why they weren't as fun. What was missing..."
She leaned in closer, her breath tickling Marco's face and causing the butterflies in his stomach to just multiply.
"You. I have so much fun with you...I...I never realized the real reason I was having so much fun was just being around you. About how much we rely on each other in battle. I mean I always feel safe with you around, no matter how dire the odds. You're my best friend...and I'm sorry if I made you feel less than that. Especially with all the hard work you've been doing."
Marco smiled brightly at her, scratching his cheek nervously "Well...you were so eager for this dance and you really wanted a dress from Earth...I...just wanted to make sure you really had a great time."
Star opened her mouth but Marco quickly cut her off "I'm sure Oskar will love it."
"Marco...I'm not going with Oskar"
Marco's face paled, did his little fit ruin Star's night? He didn't mean to!
"Oskar couldn't go. He said he was banned from all events."
"Oh..."
"Besides" Star murmured softly, wrapping her arms Marco's neck "I really, really want to go with you"
Marco blushed, slowly putting his hands on her hips, trying to ignore how close she was getting.
"Why is that Star?"
She let out a cute giggle, getting closer to her best friend, loving the way he shifted uncomfortably under her touch.
"Because I really enjoy being around you Marco."
Marco gave her a dopey smile, the gleam in his lovely brown eyes sending the butterflies in her stomach into a wild frenzy.
And as they danced, swaying back and forth, just content to be in the others presence, enjoying their own personal dance, Star made a vow.
She was totally going to kiss Marco tomorrow and she couldn't wait to see his face scrunched up adorably in surprise.
"Star? Why are you grinning so much?"
her smile became even bigger with a hint of a mischievous intent etched within.
"You're not the only one with a surprise planned wild man."
