I do not own 'Star vs. the Forces of Evil'.

I ran out of things to write in the author's note heading.

So here's a smiley face.

:)

You're welcome.

Enjoy!

(Chapter 8)

"Settle down, babies! Settle down!" Buff Frog said to his kids as he stirred the pot of soup. "Dinner vill be ready soon!"

The tadpoles were bouncing around the dinner table excitedly, eager to be fed. Buff Frog's hut was a humble home, with walls of dirt, moss and branches, and furniture made of the same stuff. The floor was just an ankle-high pool of swampwater, quite favorable for any amphibious homeowner. In the small kitchen area, Buff Frog was cooking a pot of his famous 'shroom and root stew, just like momma used to make it.

One of the pollywogs hopped off the table and made her way to the laundry hamper. She dived in, tossing up a few loose articles of clothing.

"Katrina, no!" Buff Frog put his cooking on hold and hurried over to his daughter. "I just clean those clothes! It not easy to find good clothes, you know!"

Katrina popped out of the hamper with a red towel over head.

Buff Frog chuckled. "Aww. You think you Boy in Red?"

Katrina blinked innocently up at Buff Frog.

Yvgeny picked his daughter up out of the hamper and pulled the towel off her head. The Boy in Red had become a surprisingly popular topic of conversation among the Monster community. Buff Frog couldn't tell if that bode well or not for the Human he had met by the river. Some, because of how he saved those two kids from the Mewman Knights, considered the Boy in Red to be a protector of the unfortunate. The only Mewman, or in this case, Mewman-like person, willing to give any Monster a helping hand. Other Monsters, because of the St. Olga's assault, suspected him of playing both sides for his own gain.

Buff Frog had voiced his thoughts on the Boy in Red, of course. He said to the other Monsters that the Boy in Red was just that, a boy in red, and didn't need any unneeded attention from them. The Monsters, who have always held Buff in high esteem, agreed with him, but the frog man had no control over Monster gossip. So they continued to whisper amongst themselves about the Boy in Red, and the one question they all asked themselves was: What was he going to do next?"

There was a knock on the door.

Buff Frog sat Katrina down on the table and shushed them. Cautiously, in case of danger, Buff Frog walked over to the hut's door. You never knew if a Mewnian Knight was getting ready to either arrest or execute you. When he opened the door, who Buff Frog saw was even worse than a Knight.

"Hello, Buff Frog."

Buff Frog narrowed his eyes. "Ludo."

The small, bird Monster stood on a dinner platter carried on either side by Bearicorn and Beard Deer so as not to get his robe wet.

"Hi, Buff Frog!" Bearicorn and Beard Deer greeted in unison.

Buff Frog nodded to both of them. "Hello, old friends."

"How's life in the swamp treating you, eh?" Ludo asked. "You used to live in my castle, now you live in… this." the bird gestured at the hut with his staff. "You used to have more. You used to be more."

"More is not alvays better." said Buff Frog.

"Sure it is." Ludo replied. "Who doesn't want more than what they already have?"

"Me."

"Well, that's you."

Buff Frog growled. "Vat you vant, Ludo?"

"I 'vant' a lot of things." mocked Ludo.

"Vould this include pair of stilts?"

Bearicorn and Beard Deer snickered until Ludo shot them both a dirty look. "I assume word of the Boy in Red has reached you, yes?"

Buff Frog raised an eyebrow. "Dah. Boy in Red save Monster children in voods, then protected St. Olga princesses from you and Toffee. Some say he even killed Toffee himself."

"Oh, please! Toffee being killed by a weird looking boy? As much as I would love that, it's a ridiculous notion!"

"Why you ask about Boy in Red?" Buff Frog was beginning to grow impatient.

"I need to find out more about him. I know his name is Marco, I know he's not an actual Mewman, and I know he tutors Princess Star."

"He tutors Princess?" Buff Frog asked. "That is news to me."

"I was hoping, since the boy has become the talk of the Monstertown, I could get the local gossip on him. The Monsters in these parts, for whatever reason, turn to you for advice and guidance, so I know you know all of the rumors. So, spill! What do you know?"

Buff Frog shrugged. "I know Boy in Red is good kid, and does not need you bothering him."

"Was that supposed to be helpful?!" Ludo squawked. "I want to know who he is! I want to know where he's from! I want to know who is the Boy in Red?!"

"Vhy you care so much about Boy in Red?" asked Buff Frog.

"Because! He's always with the Princess, and he's always near the wand!" Ludo cried. "He might be my only chance to finally get the wand!"

Buff Frog grunted. "I do not know anything about Boy in Red." he stated firmly. "Now leave."

Ludo growled angrily at the big, frog man. "Watch yourself, you fat toad. I will one day rule all of Monsterkind! And then, with the power of the wand, I will level Butterfly Castle, and become King of all Mewni!"

"I vill not hold breath." Buff replied before closing the door on Ludo. He walked back over to his cooking pot and continued stirring the food.

Buff Frog sighed. "Be careful, Marco."

"Come on, come on." Marco searched the shelf for the right book. When he found it, he yanked it off the shelf.

"The Fundamentals of Magic." Marco read the title aloud. He brought the book back to his study area. The Library was technically open to everybody, but since Marco was it's only patron, he had the whole place to himself. The table was covered with books, with the open Book of Queens taking up most of the space. Several open books were propped up on the chairs as well, angled to where Marco could see and read them all. Glossaryck sat on the Book of Queens with a look that was part amusement, part curiosity.

"I haven't seen this much activity in the Library since Queen Hemera… when she built the Library." Glossaryck remarked. "Queen Polaris and Queen Cosmica also both occasionally used the Library as a chart room for their explorations."

"Queen Polaris the Navigator and Queen Cosmica the Explorer." Marco said without looking up from his work. "Queen Cosmica partnered up with Hekapoo and traveled the multiverse in search of new opportunities for the Kingdom. Her daughter, Queen Polaris, explored the vast oceans surrounding the continent of Mewni and forged an alliance with the Waterfolk Kingdom."

"Very good." said Glossaryck. "But, remind me. What is the purpose of all of this?"

"I need to find out more about this magic stuff." Marco said as he organized his books. "Since you're little to no help, I have to do what I do best: Study up on the subject. I'm taking even more of a risk working for Hekapoo, so I need to figure out exactly what I'm dealing with so I can get rid of it."

"Get rid of it?" Glossaryck asked. "You make it sound like you have a parasite."

"No, I have a mutation." Marco replied. "That's how you described. I'm not entirely human anymore, right? What I have is dangerous and I need to get rid of it. Actually, it is kinda like a parasite."

"This isn't Venom, Marco. You don't have an evil, bloodthirsty monster dwelling within you." said Glossaryck. "What you have is a gift, granted to you by both the Realm of Magic, and the Blood Moon itself."

"This is not a gift!" Marco snapped. He spun at Glossaryck. "When someone gives you a gift you don't want, you can return it at the store or at least stuff it in the attic and say you lost it. This? This is the farthest thing from a gift!"

Glossaryck just chuckled. "You know, a lot of people would offer up their first-born child in exchange for the power you possess. But, you? You don't crave power, you reject it."

"I don't want it." said Marco.

"That is because you fear it."

Marco crossed his arms. "Is it so bad to not want to be all powerful? I like who I am!"

"That is why you fear it." said Glossaryck. "It's not the magic you're afraid of, nor is it even the thought of being put in a crystal for eternity. You are afraid of magic, because you are afraid of turning into a different person. You are afraid of change."

Marco blinked. "I… I didn't ask for this. Please, just take it back. Whatever process Moe Butterfly went through, there's gotta be a way to reverse it."

"I'm sorry, Marco," said Glossaryck. "but what you have? It's not something that can be reversed."

Marco let his eyes close. "...So… there's no getting rid of this." Marco reopened his eyes. "So what do I do now?"

"The only thing you can do. You need to accept and embrace the power within you."

"That's cliche."

"It's truth."

Marco sighed. "Well… what exactly is magic? You make it sound like some kind of mutagen. A kind of aether capable of speeding up the process of evolution at an incredible rate."

"Here's a kid who pays attention in school." Glossaryck remarked. "But, Marco, I only called what happened to you a mutation to help you better understand what happened to you. Magic itself… well, you Humans, as non-magical as your world is, have always guessed at the presence of magic. Every religion and mythology followed by Humans implies it. The most correct version you Humans have come up with is Chi."

"The Chinese philosophy of a circulating life energy that flows through all things." Marco stated.

"The sort of sums up magic in its entirety, yes. It's a power that flows through the whole multiverse. Some dimensions don't feel much of its effect, others get it by the boatload."

Marco blinked his eyes in realization. "...The well… the well I was dragged into. The well that brought me to Mewni. It's the wells, isn't it? They act as some kind of pump system for the magic, feeding it from the Realm of Magic to each dimension."

Glossaryck smiled and clapped his hands. "Bravo, my dear scholar. Bravo. You came into contact with the only well of magic on Earth. From there, you entered the Realm of Magic, soaked it up like a dry sponge, and entered Mewni through one of the many wells to be found in this dimension."

Marco suddenly had another momentary vision of a golden world, and someone guiding him through it. "O-Okay, so to put this in a scientific point of view; The wells act as a pump system, which is how the magic, a radioactive, environmental, mutagenic aether, flows into each universe, sometimes in great loads, other times in small doses. The amount of magic that is pumped into a dimension determines the state of the world and its inhabitants."

"A very Human perspective of magic." Glossaryck commented.

"What? Am I wrong?" Marco asked.

"You are neither wrong nor right. Magic is adaptable, Marco, very much so. And the state of magic depends on the environment or the wielder."

"What do you mean? Should I just put the books away then?"

"On the contrary, keep at it." Glossaryck replied. "There's an old saying in Mewni: No two Queens are the same."

"Humans have that same saying about snowflakes." said Marco.

"Each Queen handled and mastered their magic in their own fashion with their own methods. Thus, no two Queens have the same forms of magic." Glossaryck explained. "If your intuition is telling you to approach this from a humanly scientific point of view, then go for it. Your magic has to be your magic."

Marco rubbed his chin in thought. "So… magic adapts to the user."

"And the user must adapt to the magic, learning how to properly use it." Glossaryck added. "If you want more on that, it might help to ask another magic user. Preferably, a spell caster."

"Like who?" Marco asked.

"Well, you have three options," said Glossaryck. "There's Queen Eclipsa. She knows dark magic better than anyone, but she's currently in hiding. There's Queen Moon, but that is a very, very, stupid idea."

"But that just leaves Star," Marco pointed out. "and I can't ask her for help on this."

Glossaryck shrugged. "Why not? Do you really think she'd rat you out?"

"Well… no. But…" Marco rubbed the back of his neck. "I mean… the more she knows, the more danger she's in… so-"

"You're still flustered from when you two fell asleep cuddled up next to each other, aren't you?"

Marco blushed. "No! That is not the problem! I just… I think I would work better solo on this one."

Glossaryck shrugged. "Whatever. If you plan on trying to figure out magic through scientific means, then you'll need more data than what this Library can tell you. Mewni has had magic since the beginning, so Mewman science is a little undeveloped. Also, Mewmans aren't really a studious people, if you haven't already noticed."

Marco tapped. "Hmmm… I think I'm gonna need to expand my sources."

"And so, your majesty, I believe we should raise taxes in order to aid in the effort against the Monsters." the Mewman official said. "The sooner we rid ourselves of the Monsters, the better."

Queen Moon, seated at the head of the table in a grand chair of oak, listened patiently to the bald-headed man. "Chairman Rickard, we need not bleed the people dry in an effort to aid an already in-hand situation." The Queen replied.

"I support Chairman Rickard's proposal." another official at the table declared. "We should put all our efforts in exterminating the Monster scum."

"What say the King and Princess?" another voice shouted.

The King and Princess, seated on the Queen's left and right at the meeting table, looked very bored. King River at least made an effort to conceal his boredom, but Princess Star looked ready to fall asleep.

Star pulled at the collar of her dress. She hated dressing formally. Looking pretty for a dance or ball was one thing, but to dress solely to impress was just ridiculous in Star's book. "I think the Monsters are having a hard enough time as it is." remarked Star, feeling tired of the monotony of these meetings. "Even with their consent, It's a little unfair to take money from the people just to make the Monsters' lives even harder, don't you think?"

"Hmph! It is hard to tell if you're being sarcastic, lazy, or ludicrous!" a thin, bearded Mewman elite stated. "Perhaps all three!"

"Mind your tongue, or I'll cut it out of your mouth!" River warned.

Knowing enough not to take King River's threats lightly, the thin Mewman made no reply.

"My decision is final." Queen Moon declared. "No increased taxes on the people, not for something so unavailing. If you wish to raise money to aid in the Monster extraction, then you will need to do so by other methods." Queen Moon stood up from her seat. "This concludes our meeting of affairs. I expect the proper paperwork in my study by the end of the day."

"Oh, thank the Stump." Star muttered.

River stood up from his seat. "Welp, time to get out of these fancy clothes and go meet Eddie at the pub-Uh, I mean, I am going to do king stuff that will benefit our glorious Kingdom. Oh, yes I am."

"River."

"Gotta go! King stuff!" River dashed out of the meeting room.

"River!" Moon pinched her brow and sighed. "That man. He may very well leave me for an eagle one day."

Star hopped out of her seat. "That's my cue. Time to book it."

"Before you 'book it', Star, I would like a word." said Queen Moon.

Star groaned in aggravation. "Oh, come on, Mom! I'm going to the Bounce Lounge with Kelly and Pony! Maybe Marco will want to come with."

Moon developed that weird look on her face again. "Perhaps you should refrain from inviting Marco. I don't think he would find the rest of the multiverse all that… welcoming."

"Is that what you wanted to talk about?" Star asked in annoyance. "To tell me not to hang out with Marco?"

"No. I want to talk about your response to Chairman Rickard's proposal on raising taxes."

Star rolled her eyes. "Mom, half of this crud goes in one ear and out the other. That was like, the one time I put my two kernels in, and you're giving me crap about it?"

"Star, you need to be careful if you choose to show any charity to the Monsters." said Moon. "As noble as it might be, people will jump down your throat for it."

Star just crossed her arms. "You mean that thing with giving the Monsters a little slack? So what? We might've been enemies for over a thousand years, but that's a pretty long time to hold a grudge don't you think?"

"Your sympathy is admirable, Star. But be warned, we are enemies for a reason." Moon's tone was serious, and Star knew it was probably because of what happened to Queen Comet.

Star sighed. "Alright, fine. I'll watch what I say." She said in an exaggerated tone.

"That's all I'm asking." Moon replied in relief. "Now, go. Have fun with your friends."

"Thanks mom!" Star dashed out of the room.

"But be back before sunset or you're grounded!"

"No promises!" Star called back.

Moon sighed. "That girl."

"Is a treasure and you know it."

Moon looked back to the meeting table. Glossaryck was sitting on the table solving a puzzle of himself. It was a thousand piece puzzle, and the genie was halfway through.

"I'm surprised you continue to object against Marco and Star spending time together." The genie continued. "After all, Marco waters down Star's absinthe, and Star spikes up Marco's punch. They blend well together."

"Absinthe?"

"A Earth liquor that's basically poison. River might like it."

Moon rolled her eyes. "I have no objection to the two of them being friends, but they cannot be any more than that."

Glossaryck chuckled. "You might be able to scare Marco into agreeing to that theory, but you'll have to murder the boy and hide his body to keep Star away from him if she decides she likes him."

"And it may very well come down to that." Moon replied coldly.

Glossaryck put down another puzzle piece. "I don't recall anybody agreeing with you and River's union." he said.

"River was a prince. Marco is not." Moon argued. "It may not be fair, but that is the way of things for us royals."

Glossaryck looked up at Queen Moon. "You married the man you loved. Your father was just a commoner chef whom your mother fell in love with. Will you truly deny Star that same joy?"

Moon looked away. "We don't always get what we want." she stated. "And besides, it's not like the two of them are even in love, and doesn't Marco have a sweetheart back home anyway? What was her name? Janna?"

Glossaryck grinned like that amused him. "Things change, my Queen. For better or worse, with or without consent, things change."

Star hummed to herself as she brushed her hair with her wand-turned-hairbrush. The brush left a trail of sparkles on her hair that disappeared after a few seconds, but left her hair with a glittery sheen. Star watched the process in her mirror as she brushed, giggling every time her hair sparkled. Star had changed into a sleeveless, turquoise dress with a rainbow colored chest. Her boots looked like warnicorns and her earrings looked like butterflies.

Star's mirror activated. "Call from Flying Princess Pony Head." Star excitedly tapped the mirror and Pony Head's pony head appeared in the glass.

"Heeeeeeey girl!" she shouted. "You getting ready for the Bounce Lounge?!"

"You know it, bestie!" Star replied. "Is Kelly already there?"

"Oooooooooo, about that." Pony Head bit her lip. "She and Tad broke up.''

Star just shrugged. "So? They break up on a monthly basis."

"Yeah, but Kelly said it was for real this time." Pony Head explained. "And she is, like, super depressed right now. I don't think she even wants to come."

"Well, call her and tell her it's not up for debate!" Star demanded. "Kelly needs to be with her friends right now. We can keep the partying to a minimum and just have some drinks if she's really not feeling it, but she's coming regardless."

"Fine, but I am not going to her place to get her." Pony Head declared. "Like, I love Kelly, but those Wooletts are freakin' psycho."

"Oh, come on. So they punch each other in the face instead of shaking hands. Big deal." said Star.

Pony Head just blinked at Star with a tired expression. "Yeah, well. I'll give Kelly a call, tell her to bring her rear end to the Bounce Lounge pronto. Anything else?"

"Yeah, there was one more thing." Star twiddled her thumbs. "Would… would you object if I invited Marco?"

Pony shook her head (what else does she have?) in disbelief. "Uh, WHAT? I would absolutely object to that!"

"Ah, come on, Pony." Star whined. "Marco barely leaves the dimension. I think it'll be good for him to experience some interdimensional fun."

"Well then, Earth Turd can go back to his own crummy dimension." said Pony Head. "I've never been there, but, like, I think it's a fair assumption."

"Pony Head, that's just mean!" Star crossed her arms. "What do you have against Marco anyway? He kinda saved our lives back in St. Olga's, you know."

"He might have saved everyone else's life, but I refuse to admit he saved mine or your's." Pony Head replied stubbornly. "I basically had the whole thing under control until he came along and messed up my gameplan."

Star rolled her eyes. "Look, I'm not gonna force Marco to come with us to the Bounce Lounge. I'm just gonna invite him and he'll either say yes or no."

"B-Fly, I would literally prefer it if you invited Tom instead." said Pony Head. "He would definitely say yes."

Star hung up on Pony Head. "Time to find Marco."

Star knocked on Marco's door. "Hey-o, Marco!" she shouted. "You in there?! I'm not gonna come in, since the last time I did, I saw Glossaryck in his underwear. So… your room is gonna be a no-Star zone for a while."

When Star didn't get a response, she tapped her chin. "Hmm… Well if he's not here, there's only one other place in the castle he could be."

Star pushed the Library doors open and walked inside. "Hey, Marco?! You in here? I wanted to ask if you wanted to-wwwwwwoah."

The study area was an assortment of piled books and propped up and open books. A trio of roll-in chalkboards had complicated math equations written on them that were complete gibberish to Star. Marco was walking around his self-made system like an android, reading pages of his books and scribbling down in his notebook, mumbling to himself like he was in a trance.

Star watched Marco shuffle around in worry and slight fear. "...Uhhhhhhhh...Marco?"

"Hey Star what's up?" Marco responded without looking up from his work.

'Yeesh, no wonder Mom hired him.' "Whatcha… whatcha doin', bud?"

Marco seemed to blink out of his trance. "Oh, well...uh…"

Star picked up a random book. "Laws of Physics?" she picked up another. "Magic 101?" Star read another one. "String Theory Explained…? History of Magic…? Dark Matter of Fact…? Voodoo and Such? What is all this?"

"Please don't touch the books, I went to six different libraries to borrow those." Marco said. "Having dimensional scissors is a blast. Especially when field trips and family vacations have already brought me to all the right places."

"Right, 'cause you've got to have been there to go there." Star remembered. "But back to my question; what is all of…" Star waved her hands around. "...this?"

"Oh… well, since I'm your tutor, I thought I'd try to better understand magic, since it's a big part of your education." Marco explained, although Star got the impression he was still hiding something. "But in my world, magic only exists in myths, movies, and DnD, which I am a master at."

"I don't even know what that is, but I get the distinct feeling that's not a brag."

"Blasphemer-I mean-Since my world is a world ruled by science instead of magic like your's is, I've been trying to understand magic by scientific means. From what I've been able to gather, magic acts like a disparate gravity for the entire multiverse; no matter where you go, you're never out of it's reach, but it's stronger in some places and weaker in others. You and your maternal bloodline are able to manipulate this force at will, probably due to some unknown mutant bacterium within your circulatory system. This is all in theory, of course, but if I could get you to an actual Human doctor, we might be able to-"

"Stop! Stop! Stop!" Star cried. "No more nerd talk! I didn't come here to get a lecture! I'm going out with some of my friends and I wanted to see if you wanted to come with me."

"You're going out?" Marco asked. "I guess that explains the hair and the earrings."

"Do you like it?"

"Yeah, it looks nice."

Star blushed. "Awww, thanks. So me and my friends are going to the Bounce Lounge, wanna come?"

"Bounce Lounge?" Marco asked. "What's that, a dance club?"

"It's a nightclub in the Cloudy Dimension." Star replied. "We can do some dancing, order some food, throw back some shots," Star posed and wagged her eyebrows. "Hang with royalty and there's no limit on the fun you can have."

"...Right. Well, thank you, but no, thank you." Marco resumed his path of notes. "Have fun, though."

Star grabbed his shoulder before Marco could go very far. "Woah, hold on! You're really just gonna do this for the rest of the day?" Star asked. "Come on, have some fun with me and my friends. You've been a really great tutor and a really great friend. I wanna repay you somehow." Star's eyes got wide and pathetic, she smiled sweetly and batted her eyelashes. "Pleeeeeeeeeeease?"

Marco stared at Star with a blank expression. "...You're just gonna bring out the contract if I say no, aren't you?"

"Yup."

Marco sighed. "Okay, fine, I'll go."

"YAAAY!" Star threw her arms around Marco's neck. "You're gonna have a blast!"

'Why does that sound familiar-oh yeah, blast that will get me killed, blah blah.' Marco took a deep breath and gently removed the Princess's arms off of him. "Star, I appreciate you bringing me along to hang out with your friends, but can we please keep it as mellow as possible? I don't think I'm ready to… mingle with the interdimensional crowd."

"Don't worry, Marco. As it would happen, my friend Kelly just broke up with her boyfriend for good, so the plan was not to overwhelm her with any hard partying anyway."

"Sounds good… The no hard partying thing, not your friend breaking up with her boyfriend." said Marco. "We leaving right now?"

Star looked Marco up and down. "That's what you're wearing?"

Marco looked down at his red hoodie. "Yeah. Why, what's wrong with it?"

Star shrugged. "Nothing, I guess. You just could try to dress more… going out-ish."

"This is what I'm wearing, Star."

Star sighed. "Alright, let me see your scissors and I'll take us there."

Marco pulled out his scissors. "Margaret, make sure my system is untouched while I'm gone, please!" he called over to the front desk.

"Yes, Mr. Diaz!" the Librarian called back.

Star blinked. "You know the Librarian's name? I forget she even exists half the time."

"Yeah, a lot of people do."

"Oh… that's kinda sad." Star took the scissors and cut open a portal. "Let's go!" she shouted before hopping through.

Marco rolled his eyes before walking through the portal. Once he was on the other side of the portal, his eyes went. "Dang."

Marco was standing on a gym-sized cloud high up in the night sky. In the center of the cloud was a green, checkered dance floor with a shiny disco ball hanging above it. Although, where it hung from was a mystery, the cable just kept going up. Everywhere, creatures of various species either danced on the dance floor or sat in chairs and booths made of cloud or velvet cushion. Marco saw some seapeople, some fairies, a demon or two, a robot DJ played a techno music track on the sound system, others were just straight-up monsters.

Marco took a step forward, but stopped in his tracks when his foot touched the ground. He pressed his foot down on the cloud curiously. It didn't really feel like how Marco thought a cloud would feel like, it felt more like standing on a blimp.

"What is this, a cloud or a bounce house-oh, Bounce Lounge."

"Marco! Over here!"

Marco looked over and saw Star waving at him from one of the booths. He made his way over to Star. On his way, a mergirl lounging on a cloud couch saw Marco walking by and smiled at him. She winked at him, causing Marco to blush. Her big, shark-headed boyfriend wearing a sports jacket noticed and shot Marco an evil look, flashing his sharp teeth at him.

When Marco got to the Star's booth, he saw her friend Princess Pony Head sitting beside her, giving Marco the stink eye as he approached. Pony Head was wearing the glow-in-the-dark makeup he and Star had gotten her, although Marco didn't know whether to feel validated or annoyed. Pony's lips, cheeks, and eyelashes were glowing green. Sitting across the table from Pony Head and Star was… a topiary from a Dr. Seuss storybook. At least, that was Marco's first analogy. It was large, aquamarine in color, and looked like it fell from a truffula tree.

"You actually came?" Pony Head asked, her tone suggesting how she felt about Marco's presence. "Sure, fine, whatever. Go ahead and ruin a perfect girls' night, what do I care?"

"Pony Head!" Star scolded. "Don't listen to her, Marco. Go ahead and sit next to Kelly."

Marco looked back at the bush, which hadn't even moved. "Uh, okay." Marco sat down in the velvet seat next to the thing Star had called Kelly.

"See, Kelly doesn't even like him." Pony muttered.

"Come on, Kelly, don't be shy." Star said.

A pair of eyes appeared on the topiary. "Hello." it replied in a sad tone.

Marco jumped in his seat at the sound of her voice. "...Uh, hi… Are you a talking bush?"

"No, I'm a Woolett." A pair of arms pushed the curtain of truffula hair back, revealing a girl with brown skin. Kelly tied her hair back with scrunchy that must've been made of iron to hold all that hair. She wore a striped, white and pink shirt and black short shorts. She was cute in a bookish introvert kind of way, with her thin frame, big circular glasses, and the pink on her cheeks. Marco however, spent enough time in the Neverzone to notice the fight in someone. As sad as Kelly looked, possibly from the breakup Star had mentioned, Kelly was still as taut as a bowstring, ready to let fly.

Kelly offered Marco a smile despite her depression. "Nice to meet you. I heard about how you saved Star, Pony, and everyone else at St. Olga's. Solid work, dude."

"Oh. Well, thank you." Marco replied. "So, you said you're a 'Woolett'?"

"From Woolandia, yeah." said Kelly. "'Woolandia. Lots of hair, even more fighting.'" she gave a laughing snort. "That's our slogan. I mean, not officially, but we all like to say it."

"Cool." Marco replied.

"So, what part of Mewni are you from?" Kelly asked. She still sounded kinda depressed, but talking to Marco seemed to help her forget about her breakup.

"Oh, yeah, Kelly, he's not a real Mewman." Pony Head said snootily. "He's an off-brand species called a Humuman."

"We're called Humans, thank you very much." Marco replied. "I'm from a place called Earth."

"Marco's the first Human to ever leave his dimension." Star added. "Isn't that cool!"

"Really?" Kelly asked. "How long have you been dimension crawling?"

"Dimension crawling?"

"She means traveling to different dimensions for fun, stupid." Pony Head said. "How many dimensions have you actually been to?"

"Quite a few actually." Marco replied, beginning to feel a little crossed from having to listen to the bratty princess. "Star, could you give me my dimensional scissors back?"

"Sure, here you go." Star pulled out his scissors and handed them back to Marco.

Pony Head stared at the scissors in disbelief. "Hey! You had those scissors back at St. Olga's! Where the heck did you steal those?!"

"For your information, I didn't steal them." said Marco. He showed Pony Head his name engraved in the blade. "I earned them by surviving fifteen years in Hekapoo's dimension."

"No way!" Kelly exclaimed, excitement lighting up her eyes. "You went to the Neverzone?! I am so jealous right now! What's it like? What weapons did you use? What kind of monsters did you fight?" Kelly gasped. "...Do you have a dragoncycle?!"

"Oh, here we go." Pony Head rolled her eyes. "One more fangirl to add to the Earth Turd bandwagon that took off from St. Olga's."

"Pony, be nice!" said Star. She was just happy that Marco was helping Kelly get over Tad. Although, the amount of attention Kelly was giving Marco made something inside Star stir.

"Can I see your scissors?" Kelly asked.

Marco handed Kelly his scissors. She examined the scissors with sparkling eyes. "Ooooooooo… Impressive craftsmanship. You don't see a pair of scissors this nice very often."

"Yo, Kelly, you got a little something brown on your nose, girl." said Pony Head. "Oh, wait, that's your nose."

"How about I order some drinks?" Star suggested in an attempt to break the ice.

"I'm considered underaged in my world." Marco said.

"Oh, don't be a wuss, Earth Turd." said Pony Head. "Go ahead and order the drinks, B-Fly."

Star waved her hand in the air and a pixie waitress flew over.

"What can I get the four of you?" she asked.

"Hmmmm… four Blackhole Bourbons please." Star replied.

"You got it." the pixie flew away. A few seconds later, she flew back with a tray of drinks held above her head. Marco eyed the drinks wearily as the pixie set them down in front of him and the girls. The stuff looked like squid ink, except for the rotating vortex that floated in the center of the glass.

"Aw, what? You're starting us off with the weak stuff, B-Fly?" Pony Head complained.

"It's Marco's first time here. We should start him off with something light." Star argued.

"Bottled blackhole is light?" Marco asked incredulously.

"Personally, I like Blackhole Bourbon." Kelly picked up her glass and chugged her entire drink. She set the glass down and burped, causing a temporary ripple in the fabric of reality to appear in front of her mouth. "You gotta drink the whole thing quickly or it'll stretch out your stomach like putty." she stated like it was a completely normal thing.

Marco blinked at Kelly, then watched as the other two girls drank their bourbon, Pony had to use a straw due to her lack of appendages. As if it were a sensitive explosive, Marco gently picked up his glass. He prayed to the father, the son, and the holy ghost before chugging his drink. To his surprise, it had a pleasant berry flavor and a strong but momentary kick.

Very slowly, Marco placed his drink back on the table. Star tilted her head. "So, whaddya think?"

Marco opened his mouth to reply. "Hiccup."

The entire dimension shook. Everyone screamed in fear, but it ended in only a few seconds.

Marco quickly slapped his hands over his mouth. Star, Pony and Kelly stared at Marco in shock.

"Woah! What the heck are you Humans made of?!" Kelly exclaimed.

"See, I told you bringing him was a bad idea." said Pony.

Marco uncovered his mouth to speak. "I'm sorr-hiccup."

The dimension shook again.

Star whipped out her wand. "Hiccup Cure!" she shouted before blasting Marco with a ray of blue light. To Marco's relief, the hiccups stopped and with no magical side effects.

Marco looked around. No one was looking at him aside from the three girls. All the other club patrons just looked around in confusion before going back to whatever they were doing before the quake.

The latino boy coughed violently into his fist and blushed in embarrassment. "...Sorry." he wheezed.

"For what, almost bringing the whole world down on us literally?" Pony Head asked sarcastically. "Nah, no biggie."

"How about we get another round?" Star suggested. "Preferably anything but Blackhole Bourbon."

"Ooo, I know what to get!" Kelly waved her hand in the air and the pixie waitress came back.

"Refills?" the pixie asked.

"A round of Quasar Campari please." Kelly said. "And some starlight shots to go with them."

"You got it." the pixie waitress flew off. She came back hefting a tray in each hand. One tray had four glasses of a red liquor that swirled around in the glass like a galaxy, the other tray held a dozen shot glasses of some kind of sparkling liquid that glowed faintly and was more sparkle than liquid.

"Dang, carrying around those trays must be a killer on your arms." Marco commented as the pixie put the trays down.

"Oh, it's a great workout." the pixie winked at Marco. "If you're interested, I'll give you one after my shift's over." the pixie flew off, leaving Marco blushing fiercely.

"Word of warning: Never hook up with a pixie chick." Kelly warned. "A lot of people don't know that it's not just the empresses that eat their mates."

"Plus, I think she was like, thirty." Pony pointed out. "Ya gonna hit on some ten-year-olds next, ya perv?"

"Pony!" Star scolded.

Just to get it over with, Marco grabbed his Campari and chugged it, then chased it down with some starlight shots. The Campari tasted like strawberries with a hint of cherry, and the shots left his mouth tingling.

The girls finished off their Quasar Camparis with some shots and waited for Marco's reaction.

"...How is it?" asked Kelly. She Pony and Star didn't seem all that affected by the booze.

Marco waited a few seconds to reply, to see if any effects would take place. Before he would respond though, Marco's eyes shot wide open. They began to glow and swirl like red miniature quesars. Then his face dropped onto the table and he passed out cold.

Star, Kelly, and Pony Head stared at Marco completely shell-shocked. Kelly poked Marco's side. "Marco… you okay?" Marco was unresponsive.

"Up, he's dead." said Pony. "Guess you're gonna have to get another one, B-Fly."

Marco suddenly shot back up and gasped for breath, his back-to-normal eyes wide with panic. "...What happened?!"

"Can't hold your liquor, huh Earth Turd?" Pony Head mocked. "My turn to order the next round." Pony Head whistled for the waitress. "YO! A round of Xenon Negroni for me, my friends, and this Human guy!"

The Pixie waitress came back with a third tray of drinks. Each glass was filled with a blue liquid that glowed as if it were radioactive. The waitress placed a drink in front of each teen.

Marco eyed the negroni wearily. "I think drinking this one might kill me."

"Bottoms up, Earth Turd!" Pony Head shouted. She put her mouth on the straw and drained her glass dry. Star and Kelly chugged down their drinks as well. Marco hesitated before drinking his drink as well. This drink was stronger than the last two, and it felt like a spark was traveling through his body.

Pony Head smacked her lips, then her horn began to glow. "MMMMM-mmm! That's the stuff!"

Star burped into her fist. Her heart cheekmarks began to glow. "Hee-hee! These Xenon Negronis always make the magic in me light up."

"Wait, what?"

Marco could feel the effect of the liquor before it became visible. In a state of panic, Marco yelped as he slapped his hands over his mouth and cheeks as the red, crescent moons appeared on his face.

"Woah, Marco. Are you okay?" Star asked in concern.

"Oh, please do not barf on any of us!" said Pony. "That would be absolutely disgusting!"

"Is there a bathroom here?!" Marco's muffled scream sounded through his hands.

"Yeah, it's over there." Kelly pointed over to a little, blue brick building over on the other side of the cloud they were on.

Marco immediately got out of the booth and raced over to the bathrooms. Kelly and Star watched him dash off in worry.

"Poor guy." Kelly sympathized.

"Maybe I shouldn't have brought him here." Star said guiltily.

"Now she figures it out." Pony Head commented. She then noticed Star glaring at her. "...What?"

"What is your problem with Marco?!" Star demanded. "You've been nothing but mean to him since the moment you met him!"

"I think he's a nark. You know I hate narks." Pony Head argued. "What I don't understand is why you're sticking up for him. He's beneath you, B-Fly. You can do better than him."

Kelly crossed her arms. "So because he's a commoner, he's beneath you and Star?" she asked pointedly. "What do you bring me along for then, just as a reminder of your higher stand in the feudal system?"

"Oh, come on! It's not that Marco's a nobody from a nowhere dimension," Pony Head argued, earning another glare from both Pony and Star. "I just think he's a bad influence on Star. He's a downer, B-Fly, and you're an upper. You don't need him cramping up your style."

"Pony, Marco is my friend, and he is a very good friend." Star crossed her arms. "You're just gonna have to accept that. End of discussion."

Pony Head sank down into her seat like a pouting child. "Oh, what-ever. You can hang out with that Earth Turd all you want, but I don't buy his little-mister-innocent act. You should be careful, B-Fly. He's got some secrets hidden up his sleeve, I just know it."

Marco burst through the bathroom door. He raced over to the sink and spun the knob. Breathing heavily, he splashed some cold water on his face as it flowed out of the faucet. Marco looked into the mirror. His cheekmarks were still there; a glowing pair of red crescent moons.

Marco looked himself in the eyes, trying not to focus on his cheekmarks. "Calm down… you need to calm down… calm down… let the magic settle down."

The bathroom door opened again, and the big King Shark-looking guy in the sports jacket from before walked into the bathroom. He stomped over to Marco and growled threateningly.

"Hey. You and I need to talk." the shark-head said angrily. "You think you can just hit on my girl like that?"

"Not now, man." Marco said through gritted teeth.

"Oh, we're doing this." the shark guy said. "No shrimp like you is gonna hit on my-"

Marco jerked his head at the shark man. His eyes lit up with angry, pitch-black fire and his cheekmarks brightened.

"Not. Now."

The shark man might've wet himself with the way he stumbled back against the wall in fear. "...Uh, yeah. No prob, bro. S'all good, bro. I'll just give you some privacy." Shark-head quickly left the bathroom like a frightened guppy.

Marco blinked and the black fire disappeared. He looked back in the mirror, his cheekmarks were still there. They glowed vigorously, like they were happy to finally be let out.

Marco stared at his cheekmarks. His face morphed into one of anger, and he slammed his fist into the mirror. The spider web of cracks in the mirror glowed with purple light for a few seconds before settling down.

Marco blinked his angry look away. "I gotta get out of here." Marco reached into his pocket for his dimensional scissors, but froze in panic when he realized he didn't have them.

"Oh, crap. Kelly still has them." Marco reached his hands up to his cheeks. Even without the mirror, he knew the marks were still there. He could feel their power, like two lamps focused on his cheeks.

"Go away, dammit." Marco demanded. "Acne wasn't as bad as you two. As least acne never came with the threat of imprisonment and/or execution if someone saw it." Marco took a deep breath. "Glossaryck will know how to keep this hidden, I need to find him. I gotta get my scissors and get the hell out of here."

Marco pulled his shirt up over his mouth and pulled his hood over his head. Marco pulled on the hoodie's strings and closed his hood a little. Marco took another calming breath.

"Alright, here we go."

Star looked over at the bathroom across the cloud. "I hope Marco's okay." she said.

"Oh, he's fine." Pony Head said. "I've been in his shoes, metaphorically, or whatever. The drinks just need to come out the way they came in and he'll be fine."

Kelly's mirror rang and she pulled it out of her hair. "Ugh! Tad won't stop texting me!" she complained.

"Just block him." Pony suggested.

"Isn't that kinda mean?" Kelly asked.

"He needs to take a hint, Kel." Star said. "We've been broken up for about a year now, and Tom is still bugging me, even after all of the rejections I've given him. It's actually starting to get sad."

Kelly stared down at her mirror sadly. "Yeah… maybe you're right." she said mopily. "I know the breakup needed to happen, but my head just feels so light without him up there."

'That guy was a lazy mooch and you know it, Kel." Pony Head said. "You need to start seeing other guys."

"Like who?" Kelly asked. "Tad was like, the one guy in my dimension I ever even considered dating, and no good guy outside of Woolandia wants to date a Woolett."

"Because you're all crazy violent?" Pony asked.

"...Yeah...that."

"And because most Wooletts have bodies shaped like various fruits except, oddly, apples or pears?"

"...Uh, yeah. That… that tidbit doesn't help with my chances."

"And because of the rumor that a Woolett chick will strangle you to death while the two of you are-"

"Alright! Alright! I get it! My chances are slim to none!" Kelly let her face fall onto the table. "Thanks for clearing that up for me."

Marco chose that moment to come back. Star and Pony were confused by the way Marco had his shirt over his mouth and his hood over his head, obscuring most of his face. Kelly didn't notice, since she had her face on the table with her hair covering her whole head.

"Uh, Marco? What, uh… what's up with your hood and shirt?" Star asked.

"Not important." Marco replied a little too quickly. "Hey, Kelly? Can I have my scissors back?"

"Okay." Kelly said in a depressed tone. She took her head off the table and pulled out Marco's scissors. She was about to give them to Marco, but she froze when she saw his appearance. "Woah. what's up with the ninja look?"

"Still not important. Please just give me my scissors and I'll go."

"What's wrong, Earth Turd? Got some splashback you couldn't wash off?" Pony Head teased.

"Do you have to leave?" Star asked. "We were gonna go to the Dimension of Never Ending Fireworks next. Quick heads up: If you're not careful, you will get blown up."

"No, thank you." Marco said impatiently. "I just really need to leave."

"Are you sure?" Kelly asked. "You could stick around for just a little while longer, couldn't y-"

"Nope." Marco snatched the dimensional scissors out of Kelly's hands and immediately cut open a portal. "Gotta go. You three have fun." he said before hopping through the portal.

Star watched the portal blink away in worry and confusion. "What is going on with him?" she wondered out loud.

"Hey, quick question," said Pony Head. "Who's paying the bill for the drinks? 'Cause, I didn't bring any money."

Marco appeared in his castle room via portal. He looked around for Glossaryck, refusing to take off his ninja look until he was sure it was safe. "Glossaryck! You in here?!" Marco searched his whole room for the genie.

"Dang it, where is he?!" Marco was about to leave his room in search of the bearded gremlin, when his compact mirror rang. He pulled out his mirror and saw that Star was calling him.

Marco pulled down his shirt and hoodie before answering his mirror and bringing it up to his ear. "Star, this isn't a good time."

"Are you okay, Marco?" Star asked in concern. "Also, we have compact mirrors. You don't have to put it to telephone mode."

"I don't like the facetime mode. This feels more familiar to me." Marco argued. "And I'm fine, Star. Don't worry."

"...Is there something you're not telling me, Marco?" Star asked. "You don't have to hide things from me. If you need help, I'll help you."

Marco blinked. "I…" he reached up and rubbed a crescent moon cheekmark. "I appreciate that, Star. I really do. But it's nothing you need to worry about, I promise."

"Oh… Okay." Star said. Although, she didn't sound all that convinced. "Well… call me if you need-"

"I will. Bye." Marco quickly hung up. He pocketed his mirror and let out a heavy sigh.

"Smooth."

Marco turned around and saw Glossaryck sitting on the desk, reading a green, hardback book.

"She cares about you, ya know." he continued without looking up from his book. "And we both know you care about her as well. I'm starting to think that's the real reason you don't want her help."

"Because I don't want her to get involved in my problems?" Marco asked.

"Sure, let's go with that for now."

Marco rolled his eyes. "Please just get rid of these for me!" he pointed to his cheekmarks.

Glossaryck looked up from his book. "Let me guess; Xenon Negroni. I've been the mentor of magical princesses long enough to recognize the effects. Personally, I prefer Blackhole Bourbon."

"Just get rid of them!"

"Alright. And while I do that, maybe you can work on that attitude of yours." Glossaryck put his book down and flew up to Marco's face. The genie poked the Human's forehead and his cheekmarks faded back to invisibility. "Lay off the hard liquor, maybe?"

Marco rubbed his cheeks and sighed in relief. "Thank God."

"Or me. You could thank me." Glossaryck suggested. "Just a thought."

"That was way too close." Marco declared. "I need to be more careful at hiding these things."

"No. You need to learn how to control your magic." said Glossaryck. "You keep treating this as if it's a disease you need to keep concealed so girls will go out with you. But you need to stop trying to suppress it, and learn how to control it. Whether you like it or not, your magic is a part of you now."

"I don't want to be magical!" Marco cried. "I want to be a normal human being! I don't care if it came from the Realm of Magic, the Blood Moon, God, or Gandalf himself! I never asked for this 'gift', and I wished I had never gone down to the basement and found the well!"

"Star would've died at St. Olga's if you hadn't."

This caused Marco to pause for a minute, halting his tongue's process. "You… you could've saved her yourself. I saw you trap Toffee in an invisible box mime-style!"

"I am capable of many things, Marco, but I am not allowed to directly interfere with my charge's destiny by the laws of ancient magic." Glossaryck explained. "I can help out here and there, but they all have to traverse their own fated path. Whether it leads them to the throne, or to the grave."

"You mean like it led Star's grandma to the grave?" Marco asked. "You gonna tell me it was Eclipsa's fate to lose her family and be trapped in a crystal for three hundred years?"

Glossaryck gave Marco a cold stare.

Marco blinked. His anger and anxiety was quickly being replaced by guilt. "I… That was insensitive. I…" Marco pulled up the desk chair and sat down. "...I'm sorry."

Glossaryck sighed. "You wanna know what the hardest part of this job is? It's having to watch my charge fail. I have been the mentor to thirty-six Queens of Mewni. Some of them did horribly, some of them did okay, and some of them did pretty good. And some of them… their failure was inevitable and beyond even my control. My knowledge is vast, but not infinite. I cannot see what will happen, just what will most likely happen. Whenever my charge fails, even after how hard she fought, it is the worst of feelings, for I was incapable of helping her."

Marco looked down in shame. "I'm sorry." He repeated.

"Star is destined to fail without you, Marco. Or, to be more specific, this kingdom will fail her without you. I brought you here to ensure that Star, perhaps the Butterfly who lives up the most to her name, does not fail. Also, to help undo the worst of my failures."

"Eclipsa."

Glossaryck nodded. "The Queen with one of the most unfortunate fates, and she was labeled a villain for it. Now that she's free, she's waiting for you to report back with news of her daughter."

"Festivia?" Marco asked.

"Meteora. Eclipsa's second-born, and Festivia's half-sister, was named after Queen Meteora the Relentless."

"Oh, yeah. I remember reading about her in the Book of Queens. She was a Monster killer with a kill count even higher than Queen Solaria's. The book made her sound like kind of a psycho. I think her limerick went something like 'A trail of blood and tears her axe did leave behind.'"

"'No mercy was shown in the extermination of Monsterkind.'" Glossaryck finished. "Yeah, the first Meteora was a messed up kid, not gonna lie. And her husband was a very, very, unlucky bastard. He was a Count from Pie Island, back when that actually meant something. Good looking guy, one of the few honest Pie Folk. Meteora had a crush on him since they were little, so she threatened to burn Pie Island to the ground if Count Longfellow didn't marry her. They married, and the consummation of that marriage was one of the many reasons she was called 'The Relentless'."

"...God damn, dude."

"You're telling me." replied Glossaryck. "Eclipsa named her daughter after Meteora the Relentless to give the name 'Meteora' a reimaging. Eclipsa grew up with her mother telling her stories of Queen Meteora's conquests and little Eclipsa hated every one of them. So when her second-born came into this world, Eclipsa named her Meteora, hoping the name would someday mean something else other than senseless death."

"Kinda sounds like she was just trying to stick it to her mom."

"That's another reason, yes. Naming her half-Monster granddaughter after her Monster-killing idol. Ironic poetry."

Marco slumped in his chair and sighed heavily. "...Okay, maybe you're right. Maybe I should try to learn how to control my… my magic. I still hate calling it that."

"Are you really gonna refer to it as mutagenic aether instead?"

"Fine, magic works too." Marco sat back up in his chair. "So, you'll give me magic lessons and stuff?"

"I could, but you should really ask for aid from another magic user. Namely a Butterfly, since they're linked to the Realm of Magic just as you are."

"You want me to ask Star for help." Marco guessed.

"That could work. I'd give Star the practice she needs, and we'd give you the practice you need."

"Glossaryck, I-"

"Marco, aside from me, Star is the only magic user you can trust with this other than Eclipsa, who is currently at large. Star is the only person who can help you right now."

Marco groaned. "I just don't want to get her in any trouble."

"I think you mean you don't want to get too attached to the cute little blue-eyed blonde with fire in her veins."

Marco blushed. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Not yet, perhaps. Not entirely, anyway."

Marco rubbed his forehead in frustration. "I hate magic."

"Ya wanna know something, kid?" Glossaryck asked. "I don't really care for the stuff either."

Star hopped through the portal into her room. "Thanks for the portal, Pony!" she called through the portal before it blinked away. Star walked over to her bed and fell down on the sheets. "Ahhhhhhhhh… now to get back to stupid, boring, princess stuff."

There was a knock on the door.

"Ugh. That's probably Mom, here to check to see if I'm home on time." Star hopped off her bed. "That was faster than usual."

Star headed over to her door and opened it up, surprised to see Marco on the other side of the door, looking guilty and nervous.

"Oh. Hey, Marco. Feeling any better? I have some home remedies if you're still a little-"

Star gasped in absolute shock when two red, crescent moons appeared on Marco's cheeks.

Marco rubbed the back of his head. "Yeaaaahhhhhh… there's something I need to tell you."

"And so, Queen Diana the Huntress chased down the fabled Moss Man for three whole weeks, driven to prove its existence."

Cradled in Eclisse's arms, Mariposa let out a little yawn.

"And after three whole weeks of expert tracking and living off the land, Queen Diana finally found it. The legendary Moss Man. But he was a slippery beast, he seemed to be able to disappear like a shroud of fog. But Queen Diana was cunning. With her skill of magic and hunting, she cornered the creature."

Mariposa blinked. Her eyelids looked to be growing heavy.

"Queen Diana aimed her bow at the cowering Moss Man, her goal was to slay the beast and ride back to Butterfly Castle wearing it's hide. But she just couldn't do it. The Moss Man was a beautiful creature. A gentle giant who wouldn't even harm a fruit fly. And so, Queen Diana lowered her bow, and thanked the Moss Man for a wonderful hunt. When she got back, she was mocked for her failure to bring back the beast, but she didn't care one bit. And many years later, Queen Diana's granddaughter, Queen Luna the Child, was saved by the Moss Man."

Mariposa fell asleep in Eclisse's arms.

The nanny smiled down at the snoozing baby. "But that's a story for another time, it seems." Eclisse gently laid the baby down in her crib. Seeing Mariposa asleep in her crib brought both joy and sorrow to Eclisse.

"...Can I tell you something, Mariposa?" she whispered.

Being asleep, Mariposa didn't respond.

Eclisse took a deep breath. "I used to have two baby girls, just as adorable as you. Little Festivia was my first daughter," Eclisse chuckled. "I named her that because when she was born, she swung her arms and legs around like she was dancing." A tear escaped her eye. "I did my best to be a good mother to her, but no one approved of me being any kind of mentor to the next Queen of Mewni. I just hope she still managed to become a good Queen and good person after I left."

Eclisse sighed. "I shouldn't have left her, I'm a terrible mother for it. But I was incredibly unhappy, I couldn't take it anymore. So I ran to the arms of my beloved Globgor, and we had a child together, giving Festivia a little half-sister. I named her Meteora, after my mother's idol. But…" Eclisse let her eyes close.

"I have no idea if she even lived past her first birthday. Your brother is hopefully looking into what happened to her, but he has no real reason to help me." Eclisse reached down and stroked Mariposa's cheek, who cooed in her sleep.

"I pray to every god and every spirit nothing bad happened to her."

Meteora held her clawed hand in front of her and concentrated. "Come on, come on, come on."

A small swirl of green fire danced around her fingers before extinguishing.

Meteora slammed her fist into the floor, leaving it cracked. "Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr… Mastering my father's gift was no problem, but mastering my mother's magic is proving to be far more difficult."

Gemini hobbled into the Globgor's chamber. The frozen, looming figure of the Monster King made Gemini shake.

"Uh, Miss...Meteora? I've finished redecorating your room. Your nursery is now your study. I even found a futon in the basement and had Rasticore carry it up. Now you have couch, and a bed!"

"Yes, yes, lovely." Meteora replied dismissively, still concentrating on her hand.

"You also have a bookshelf, but not very many books. Plenty of scrolls, though. Temples seem to be big on scrolls. Not sure why. I would think books are better for anything that includes writing down information, wouldn't you?"

"I don't think it's possible for me to care any les-" Meteora's eyes shot wide open. "Wait a minute. Back at St. Olga's, Princess Star Butterfly had a magic wand and a book of spells, correct?"

Gemini blinked his yellow, mechanical eye in confusion. "Uh, yes. I do believe she did." Gemini tapped his chin. "The wand was mostly kept in its box, but the book was harder to keep track of. It kept disappearing and reappearing in and out of nowhere, as if it were alive or something."

"Get Rasticore in here!" Meteora commanded.

"Yes, milady." Gemini hobbled away. A few minutes later, Rasticore stomped into the room.

"You rang, your highness?"

"You're getting bored, aren't you Rasticore?" Meteora asked. "I have a mission for you."

"Finally!" Rasticore cried. "I don't care if it's just a sandwich run, I'll do it!"

"Oh, it's much more important and exciting than that. Although I might have you grab some sandwiches on the way back, we're running out of provisions. I need you to steal something for me."

Rasticore scratched his chin. "Theft, huh? Not really my field. I normally kill, be it assassination or hired merc. But no problem, I can steal for you. What's the target?"

"The Butterfly's magic wand and their Book of Spells."

Rasticore appeared startled by Meteora's request. "What? That's impossible! Do you have any idea how many thieves have tried to steal that wand?"

"I don't really care." replied Meteora. "You are going to steal the wand and the book for me. Kill whoever you have to in order to get it. Preferably, the brat who wields the wand."

Rasticore blinked his one good eye. "You want me to kill the Princess?"

"I was planning on killing her myself further down the road, but yes." Meteora tilted her head. "Is that a problem?"

"Killing a kid? Of course not, I've done that before." Rasticore said. "But every Septarian is bound by our own creed to never spill the blood of our own blood. And, whether you like it or not, Princess Star is your blood."

"So because she's my great, great, yadda yadda, grandniece, I shouldn't kill her?" Meteora asked like Rasticore was an idiot. "The girl doesn't mean anything to me, none of them do." the former headmistress narrowed her eyes dangerously.

"They are all owed retribution, and I am going to deliver. The Kingdom of Mewni will be mine, and I am going to avenge my parents by soaking those grounds in the blood of any who would oppose me. This isn't about who's related to who. This isn't about saving the Monsters or giving the Mewmans what they deserve. This is about one thing and one thing only."

Princess Meteora Butterfly spread her clawed hands. Her club cheekmarks glowed turquoise and her eyes glowed venom green.

"Vengeance."

Personally, I thought the ending was kinda hardcore.

So that's a wrap! I am putting both of my stories 'Ace of Spades' and 'Something More' on hold to work on a new story! Some of you have already guessed it, but it's gonna be a 'Steven Universe' AU fanfic. It doesn't actually feature Steven though. Greg is going to be the main character of my fanfic. When he gets mixed up in Homeworld's garbage (literally and later figuratively) he gets sent off planet and has to survive in a world where no organic life is meant to survive, with the help of some local aliens, including one with pink hair. Not gonna tell you which one, though.

You guys might be noticing a familiar theme in my stories… It's safe to say that Greg is gonna get the worst of it out of my three AU guys. The name of my fanfic will be 'An Odyssey to Remember', so keep an eye out for it!