Special thanks goes out to my friend Blackwolf for pre-reading this and giving me substantial feedback. More in-depth authors notes at the end.
A warm red light shined on the battered body of Marco Diaz. The young man rubbed crust off his eyes as he got to his feet, grabbing his phone from the nightstand. He frowned, his hazy vision making out the time. "Again?" He put the phone back on the nightstand, laying back down and staring at his white ceiling.
Knowing that sleep eluded him, he just reflected on yet another strange dream. Usually, Marco recalled dreams of him spending time with his one real friend or of… His brown eyes drifted to the neatly organized desk a few feet away from him. The darkness covered it, but Marco made a faint smile at the picture frame. Sighing at himself, he pulled up the covers and frowned.
I don't recall ever meeting a blonde girl with hearts on her cheeks anywhere… Tossing and turning to get a cozy spot, he closed his eyes again, hoping sleep would take him again.
"Narwhal Blast!" A bubbly but serious voice shouted, shooting a magical creature from a magic wand, its star crystal in the center glowing as the spell was casted. The creature collided into Frog Monster, him falling backwards and colliding into other monsters heading Star's way. She playfully spun the wand around, closing her eyes and relishing her victory.
Making a loud battle cry, Marco jumped in front of the blonde girl, flipping a charging lobster monster over their shoulders. "Stay focused Star!"
"I know, these guys are chumps," Star playfully tossed her wand back and forth, grinning as she shot a surge of sharp heart daggers at the remaining monsters. The only monster standing was one little kappa creature, its yellow eyes twitching in pure frustration. "Gotta do better than that, Ludo."
"I will get you one day, Star Butterfly!" The monster shouted boldly, though his tiny voice betrayed his intention. The other monster carefully limped toward the portal cut by Ludo, saying muffled curses and even glaring at their leader before groaning in pain. Ludo was about to shout something else but the portal closed before Star or Marco could hear him.
The two friends gave each other a hug and smiled proudly at one another. But a loud cough broke up the moment, with an Echo Creek Police Officer tapping their foot, glaring at the duo. "Miss?"
"Yes?" Star answered cheerfully.
"You know that damaging a police vehicle is against the laws, correct?" Star and Marco dumbly blinked, with the latter sweating bullets.
"Actually, I…" Star couldn't answer as Marco yanked her away, entering a full-on sprint. "Hey! I was going to explain…"
"Unlike you, I don't rock orange, we gotta bolt!" Marco shouted, with Star giggling. She caught up with him and the two ran into an alleyway, nearly avoiding the police officers. Taking deep breaths, the two simply looked at each other and laughed. Marco leaned against the wall, shaking his head exasperated. "You are the Princess of Chaos and Mayhem."
Star folded her arms, having a playful glint in her blue eyes. "Aww, that's so sweet." Marco rolled his eyes and peaked around the corner, surveying their surroundings. "I think we lost them bud."
"Just making sure…" Marco walked out of the alleyway and resumed their walk to Baritas Tacos. "All that fighting sure made me hungry. Going to order extra today." Star started bouncing in joy, her eyes reflecting her namesake. "…Fine, I'll get you extra Surgeritos, don't know how you stomach those."
She just scoffed and walked in front of him, playfully wagging her finger. "You just aren't, uh, 'cultured' enough." Marco blinked. "Janna taught me that."
"Of course she did." The two laughed and continued their little misadventure.
"I am the chosen, I am the guardian, the guardiaaaan!"
Marco bolted awake, his phone blasting a loud song he was playing as his alarm. I need to change that. He rubbed his tired eyes, recalling his dream. How the hell I hung out with a girl that put sugar on her burritos astounds me. Marco shivered, throwing the covers off and rubbing his neck.
Despite that… unpleasant fact, a dumb smile couldn't escape Marco's face as he brushed his teeth and freshened up. It was hard to make out much from the dream, but what struck him the most were a pair of glowing pink hearts on her face and lengthy blonde hair. Oh, and her fierce blue eyes too.
Standing in front of his mirror, Marco did mock karate poses and acted out some of his moves from the dream. After a moment, he only laughed at himself and rested his hands on the counter, simply looking at himself. Brown eyes narrowed, trying to figure something out.
Marco eventually sighed, throwing some cold water on his face and finishing cleaning up. Putting on his favorite get-up, a simple red hoodie with matching blue skinny jeans and walked down the stairs.
He passed by various pictures hanging up on the wall, showing the seemingly endless exchange students that used to live in the guest room across from him. Marco stopped, looking at the empty place that one picture would be.
"Shame we couldn't get someone that year but…" Marco felt his eyes drop, taking a deep breath and continuing toward the kitchen. He spotted his parents, both lost in thought. Angie Diaz was simply fixing up some eggs and bacon, while Rafael was reading the paper, rubbing his stubbed chin in thought. Not wanting to bother them, Marco simply opened the fridge and took out some ice coffee, pouring it in a cup and sitting down.
Noticing him, Angie smiled and grabbed a plate. "Hey sweetie, had a good sleep?"
"Maybe I guess?" Marco shrugged his shoulders, taking a sip of his coffee. "Ever had dreams of strange girls?" He heard his father sigh, putting his paper down and giving his son a proud smile. "No, Dad. It wasn't Jackie."
"Oh mjio, you are just at that age," He started, puffing up his large chest and his brown eyes lovingly looking at his wife. "I dreamt about your mother before we even met." Marco rolled his eyes, mouthing 'thank you' to Angie as she passed him his plate of eggs.
"I doubt that," Marco replied, taking a bite of his eggs. "You don't just dream up about random people you've never met before." He tapped his chin. "I have been watching that anime hermana liked recently." The girl in his dreams did somewhat mirror that… Cure, something. Shrugging his shoulders, he just watched his parents study him. "What?"
They only exchanged looks, though Marco frowned at how quickly they put on a fake smile again. "Nothing, just happy your minds on other things." Angie answered, eating a strip of bacon and looking away from her son.
Rafael only sighed, leaning forward and looking right at Marco. "We just want you to open up again," He started, with Marco harshly looking at his food. It suddenly didn't look appetizing anymore. "It's great you have a friend, but we want you to be happy."
He hastily got up, gently pushing the plate away from him. "I'm going to train for a bit. Will leave for school soon." Tuning out his parents completely, Marco walked up the stairs and opened the guest room. He slammed the door shut and looked at his shaky hands.
In and out… In and out…
Meditating helped his bubbling anger die down, opening his eyes and looking around for something to take his remaining frustration out on. His eyes glazed over the dumbbells, pulley and boxing bag. They eventually landed on a training dummy. Cracking his knuckles, he entered a battle stance mastered from sparring sessions at the family dojo.
Feeling a familiar tune play in his mind, Marco charged toward the dummy, making careful jabs and a few kicks. His mind felt cloudy, effortlessly hitting what would be lethal pressure points on a normal opponent. Every punch and kick was fueled by the 'concern' his parents consistently threw in Marco's face.
It's not my fault my rock abandoned me. He jabbed once.
Or how my grades slipped a bit. A second jab collided into the dummy's head.
"And it's not my fault she's GONE!" Marco finished the combo, landing a roundhouse kick on the dummy, knocking it off the post it was bolted into. He winced, seeing the poor thing colliding into the wall. "Damn it, I lost my cool again."
Marco sighed, making some stretches before picking up the dummy and getting it set up again. Finishing fixing it up, he bowed before the dummy. Right as he finished his bow, he didn't have to turn around to know his best friend was near.
"Wanna guess what I stole this time?"
He turned around, folding his arms and grinned. "My keys?"
Wagging the jingly objects, Janna Ordana clicked her tongue and leaned into the beanbag. Marco shook his head and held out his hand. Janna tossed the keys to him and he just followed Janna's train of vision. "Did a number on Oskar."
"No, his name is Jeremy," Marco corrected her as he leaned on the plain blue wall. "I actually like Oskar, even though he's a…"
"Junkie loser that will die in a ditch in a year? Poor fucker." Janna finished. Marco simply took in his best friend. Ditching the beanie for the warmer fall weather, her brown hair was hanging out. In addition, she started wearing a sweater and orange skirt combo. "Ooh, like what you see buster?"
"Don't flatter yourself," Marco smirked, folding his arms. "Just glad you aren't bundling up. Not cold yet." Janna mouthed 'Sure' and gave Marco a flirtatious wink. Seeing no reaction, she pouted.
"No wonder all the ladies ignore you Diaz," Janna sighed, tucking her hands into pockets. "You're no fun."
The two left the guest room, with Janna sliding down the stairs. "Hey! You'll…" When she landed gracefully, he just shook his head. "Never mind."
Angie and Rafael waved at Janna, with the former passing her a brown bag. "Have a great day at school kids!" She did a salute and walked out the door. Angie also gave him a brown bag, putting a warm hand on his shoulder. He turned away from her, unable to meet her eyes. "Keep trying, okay?"
"I-I will, Mom." He took his lunch and after rushing upstairs to get his backpack, he waved goodbye to his parents and chased after Janna.
"So, what's the plan today?" Janna said in-between bites from her sandwich Angie Diaz made. Marco simply raised an eyebrow, carefully munching his lunch. He sighed at how lovely his parents cooking was. Much better than the slop here. Marco turned toward two classmates, eating somewhat-cold pizza. The lanky one took a bite of it and recoiled at how hard it was, while the larger one simply scoffed it down no problem.
"What do you mean? If you want to watch a movie later than cool, but gotta get some training in." Marco took a bite from his taco, with Janna giving him a blank look. "You want to try some 'freaky stuff', don't you?"
She grinned, putting her sandwich down and throwing her arm around his shoulder. "How do you know me sooo well?"
"You literally did a mind-reading thing for a whole year," Marco shivered, feeling deeply unsettled at that moment in his life. "It's a miracle I'm not dead yet." Janna laughed, taking another bite from her lunch. Marco gently moved her arm off him, leaning forward and studying the lunchroom.
Being one of the biggest spots in Echo Creek Academy, Marco felt nothing looking at the white paint peeling off the walls, nor did he care about the various people around him. Football players, the popular cheerleaders and even some randoms he vaguely recalled talking to; they all looked like static puppets more than people. But what surprised him was the amount of life in them today. Various cheerleaders and even some people from the 'School Spirit Club' were working together to put up various 'Halloween Dance' decorations being set up in the corner.
Janna took notice of it too, waving her hand and getting his attention. "Just some bullshit the school is doing to celebrate Halloween."
Marco blinked. "Wait, it's Halloween today?" Janna nodded. "Wow, I'm really out of it if I forgot Mariposa's favorite holiday." He rubbed his arm, eyes downcast. "She loved dressing up as princesses." He let out a stupid laugh recalling one of the costumes. "Wouldn't stop yelling Spanish curses at me for teasing her that one time."
Janna gave a nostalgic smile, taking Marco's hand and giving it a firm squeeze. "Hey, she's our little witch watching over us. I bet she can turn Jackie into a toad for you." Marco ripped his hand away, eyes narrowing at the table.
"I...I get she's your friend, but that's still a sore spot," Marco admitted, covering his face. "I was such a damn idiot." Janna simply patted Marco's back for a moment. Marco uncovered his face, giving Janna a faint smile. "What are you dressing up as? I'll ask my Dad if he still has that old skeleton costume."
Janna scoffed. "That still fits you? Don't know if you noticed, but you've bulked up a bit the past year." Marco blinked, looking himself over. Oh. Marco blushed, rubbing his neck sheepishly. Janna felt her face heat up, looking away and coughing to compose herself. "…Made things awkward."
"Yeah, you kinda did." Marco admitted, the two looking at each other before having dumb grins. "Well, I can always modify the costume or try something else." Marco picked up his and Janna's trash and threw it in the nearby can. Though it accidentally hit something else instead. He heard a faint 'Hey!" and bolted right back to his spot.
Janna laughed her ass off. "You hit Jackie right in the head!"
"Yeah and she's gonna come this way if you don't shut up." Marco hissed.
"Marco?" Damn it. He turned around, seeing Jackie hold out the crumbled paper bag. "Uh… You missed."
"Yeah, sorry." He grabbed it and hastily left the cafeteria. Going outside to get some air, he sat down on the grass and covered his face.
Memories started bubbling to the surface and he simply grit his teeth. I don't want to remember any of that! He punched the ground, leaving a small imprint on the dirt. Seeing the warm sun cast some shade over him, he hugged himself, watching his peers simply being… normal.
Some people playing basketball on the court, a bunch of people eating lunch a few feet across from him and even the 'nerds' sitting at a table playing some board game. Then his mind went back to his recent dreams, feeling a sense of…
Adventure. Marco smiled, wanting that kind of excitement in his life. He always did enjoy watching those action shows with Mariposa, always smiling seeing her act out the Pink Ranger or whatever. "Is it possible to get something like that?" He mumbled to himself, seeing the warm sun shine a faint red.
He narrowed his eyes at the sun, looking like a red moon for a split second. He blinked, rubbing his eyes to check if he was seeing things. But no, it was just the regular ol' sun. "Trying to blind yourself now?"
Marco turned to his right, seeing Janna leaning on the wall. "I guess. Sorry for running off back there." Janna waved her hand, passing Marco a flier. He took it, reading the invitation for the Halloween Dance.
"Brittany Wong was passing this around, so I took one," Janna playfully rolled her eyes. "I was thinking we could resurrect a clown to terrify the town but I think this will take our minds off stuff better."
Marco rubbed his chin, feeling a smile form on his face. "One would assume I would be asking you out on the date." Janna punched Marco's arm. "Bold aren't we?"
"Just don't ditch me for Jackie when she swoons over Dork of the Dead tonight," Marco made a fake gasp. The two friends laughed as Marco got up. "What kind of witch should I be tonight?"
"Please don't come drenched in pig's blood," Janna raised an eyebrow. "You totally would do that."
Janna whistled and walked on ahead. Marco turned around, seeing the sun shine that faint red again. Thin line on his face, he looked away from it and resumed his day, part of him excited about tonight.
The rest of the school day flew by, with Marco and Janna chilling in his room back home. Marco was looking through his closet, trying to find the costume. "I'm positive I put the thing in here…" Looking through identical red and black hoodies, he eventually found a small box. "Bingo."
He faced Janna, dumb grin on his face. He was only met with a lone piece of popcorn being flicked at his forehead. "Put the thing on already! I need to conjure up my costume soon."
"I'm not getting dressed in front of you," Marco deadpanned, putting the box on his desk and taking it out piece by piece. "Besides, I think I need to repair the mask."
Janna got off Marco's bead, sitting on the desk and picking up the broken mask. Ignoring his protests, she simply looked between the mask and Marco. Tapping her chin for a moment, she grinned, dropping it on the floor. The mask shattered into a bunch of little pieces. "You don't need this."
His eye twitched, Marco taking a deep breath and grabbing a broom and dustpan tucked away in his closet. "How many times have I told you. I hate messes." Janna made a dumb laugh, watching Marco obsessively clean up the mask bits. "There… Though I think Dad's going to be pissed later."
"Eh, whatever." Janna shrugged her shoulders, leaning on the wall and looking outside the window. Her eyes went wide, then narrowed at the moon peeking through the clouds. "It's that Blood Moon again."
"Blood what not?" Marco said from the closet, putting the broom and dustpan away. He just heard her voice grow more serious as she continued.
"It's a magical moon that is deeply connected to Fate Magic and other sick stuff," Marco left the closet, sitting on his bed and giving her a curious look. "Hey, didn't you say something about seeing that in dreams the other day?"
Marco shrugged his shoulders, leaning forward and playing with his fingers. "Yeah but I think it's because of stress," he started, with Janna sitting down next to him. "I doubt seeing that strange girl in my dreams is because of a moon."
Janna gave him a serious look. "Okay Warlock, tell me what you think is happening then?" She went uncharacteristically silent, Marco blinking in surprise. He simply waited for an answer, but Janna only sighed, wordlessly getting up and walking out of the room. She's never cagey about magic stuff.
He followed her, seeing her walk toward the front door. "…Make sure you actually show up at the dance tonight. If I have to dance with Oskar or Brittany, I'll castrate you." And like that, the door slammed shut. Marco rubbed his arm, feeling a pang of guilt course through him.
"Are you finally going for it mjio?" Marco jumped, seeing his father sitting on the couch and having his canvas set up. Marco rubbed his neck, studying the strange sad clown painting. Seeing his son's worried look, Rafael laughed boastfully. "Oh, just making a Le Payaso with some of that 'Diaz' flare.
"…Sure." Marco encouraged his father, sitting next to him. "And about Janna, I don't think so," He clasped his hands together, glassy eyes looking at the table. "Not ready for something like that after Jackie."
Rafael stopped painting, putting his brush aside and throwing an arm around his son. "You have to treat each day as if it was your last," Marco wanted to recoil hearing that but his father's tight grip prevented that. "It's no secret our lives haven't been the easiest, but Diaz's are strong!" His father puffed up his chest, Marco smirking in pride. "Even if you don't feel ready, why not try?"
I could think of a million reasons why not. Marco cynically thought but the more his father's words played in his mind, those dreams also did. Star…whatever her name was, never faltered or faced challenges with worry. She charged into things, was bold and had a warm smile on her face no matter what. Maybe that's what those dreams are about. Marco bolted up, feeling something bubbling inside him. "You know what? I think you're right, Sensei."
Rafael blinked, seeing his son do a respectful bow. Humoring him, Rafael mirrored his son and the two grinned at each other. Marco ran upstairs to throw on the costume, hearing a muffled 'Don't do what I wouldn't do!' from his father downstairs. In a span of two minutes, Marco was all ready for the dance.
Fixing his jacket, Marco noticed his shoulder having a faint glow. He rolled up his sleeve, seeing the simple monarch butterfly tattoo he got two years ago, plan as could be. "Huh…" Marco shrugged his shoulders and finished dressing up. Running out the door, he felt nervous excitement, something he hasn't felt in a long time.
"Woah." Marco blinked, surprised at how lively the school felt for once. Usually feels kinda… dead here. But seeing couples and other classmates going in and out of the school was interesting. Tucking hands into his pockets, Marco's eyes tried scanning for Janna, though he felt eyes watching him as well.
He tried tuning out the voices but familiar ones rung out.
"Yo, it's Diaz! Didn't know he had a date tonight."
"Look Fonz, it's Marco. Should we say hi?"
"Pathetic, the loser trying to look snazzy to get Jackie back."
Right, the break up was quite, uh, public. Marco winced recalling the memory but quickly patted his cheeks. No, tonight isn't about lost memories. He put his hand on the lunchroom door. "Here goes nothing."
Gently pushing it open, he nearly recoiled at the booming music rattling his skull. Feeling his head stop throbbing, he started tapping his foot to the beat. At least it's a good bop. Making a mental note to ask who the artist is from the DJ, he just narrowed his eyes, looking for his friend.
Trying to move around the sea of dancing classmates, he started getting annoyed. Not even seeing someone dress up as one of those magical girls from the anime Mariposa liked didn't stop the annoyance. He eventually found himself by the punch bowl, wiping some sweat from his forehead.
Picking up a plastic cup, he poured himself some and had a sip. "Didn't know you liked spiked blood." Marco spit the drink out, looking over himself to ensure it didn't spill anywhere. Hearing that familiar snarky laugh, he sighed and put the cup down. "Clean up nice for me, didn't you?"
Marco turned toward Janna and felt his face heat up a bit. She was wearing a somewhat short black dress with spiderwebs at the hemming. She even matched the look with a metal wand and green witches hat. "Uh, you look nice too." Marco rubbed his arm, looking away from her.
Janna smirked, tipping her witches hat and throwing her arm around his shoulders. "Glad you're smitten too. Now, I can turn you into a toad to sit on my shoulders." Marco laughed, doing his best to not lose his composure. "I really can do that, you know."
"And that's what scares me," He leaned back and looked into his empty cup. "...Sorry if I upset you earlier. You sounded pretty serious about that Moon."
Marco felt Janna's grip on his tighten for a moment before she let go and shrugged her shoulders. "Eh, it's likely nonsense. Not every tome is right." Yeah, I would know. Marco will never forget Janna's 'moment' of screaming at the bookstore owner for lying when they were kids. She would've killed him if I let go. Seeing Marco smirking, she pouted. "Oh, don't you get me started on that quack."
"Lips are sealed," Marco held up his hands, earning an eye roll from Janna. The two turned toward the dancing crowd. Then they looked at each other, and then quickly looked elsewhere. A minute of silence hovered in the air and Marco wanted to kick himself. Be brave Diaz! He coughed, getting Janna's attention.
"May this, uh, Skeleton Knight dance with his Maiden?" Janna's face was stoic, blinking in surprise. Marco felt eyes watching them and his back wet with sweat. Janna laughing in his face made his heart sink.
Seeing Marco's brown eyes downcast, Janna simply took out his held out hand and smiled. "Why of course. Every witch needs to treat her subjects well." The two ran into the crowd and just danced. Marco tried putting her hands on her back, but Janna quickly took control, spinning Marco around and catching him in her arms. He blinked, seeing a fire in her brown eyes.
Feeling a surge of confidence, he took control and spun Janna around, the two simply lost in each other. Marco ignored the eyes studying the two of them and the surprised gasp of a familiar voice in the distance, he just felt nothing but joy in this moment.
Even the warm light of the Blood Moon didn't phase him, closing his eyes and feeling completely lost in the moment. Before he even realized, he and Janna were very close toward one another. "Star…"
And like that, he felt the cold floor on his back. The strange haze on his mind vanished, realizing what he just said. Janna gave him a shocked expression, Marco backing away in horror. He looked at his hands, seeing them tremble. Everyone was watching him, and the red moonlight stalking his every move.
"What… What's happening," Marco felt his head throb in pain, covering his face and curling up in a ball. Memories of dancing with that Star person flooded his mind and he tried shaking them off. But what froze his heart was opening his eyes, and seeing Star in Janna's place.
"You okay, Marco?" Janna tried speaking but it wasn't her voice. It was that girl's voice from his dreams. "You're scaring me…" People tried circling them. "Back the fuck off! My friend is scared shitless right now!" She screamed at the crowd, with Marco feeling tears come down his cheeks.
"I… I can't do this," Marco scrambled to his feet and tackled through the door, ignoring the worried shouting from Janna and even… "Who the hell are you?!" Marco shouted, slamming the doors open and glaring at the Blood Moon, it towering over him. "Leave me ALONE!"
The warm light felt cold, freezing him in place. Marco couldn't do anything as his body was completely bathed in a beam of light.
Marco fell on his knees, eyes dilating from the light vanishing and being replaced by blood red skies. "W-What happened?" He got to his feet, taking in his surroundings. Gone was Echo Creek or the school, being replaced by a creepy castle looming over him. "Did…" He looked over his hands, moving them around for a bit. "Did I end up in some other world?"
"Get back here!" Marco's eyes shifted to the moving drawbridge, with it coming down and various skeleton and demon knights charging his way. He was ready to roll out of the way but a speeding golden light tackled into him and the two tumbled near a tree.
Marco groaned in pain, looking toward his attacker. His body froze up, backing away in horror. "Y-You're…" The girl looked up at him, blue eyes looking just as shocked. She looked both similar and different than the dreams, having a serious glint in her blue eyes and her hair style not wild and free, but simply in a neat bun.
"Idiot, look out!" She shoved Marco aside and shot a golden beam at one of the guards, reducing them to pure ash. She tried getting to her feet but she couldn't, holding her knees and having heavy breaths.
Marco felt his body go on autopilot, grabbing something off the ground and standing guard before Star. "What are you, some punk she summoned?" The demonic guard laughed, brandishing a burning sword.
The guard couldn't say another word, with Marco punching right through the demon, his fists covered with the transformed wand. Pulling his fists away from the giant hole in the demon, he entered a combat stance, punching the wand gauntlets together and cracking his neck. A protective urge took hold, something both familiar and new to him.
Yes, you read that right. This is a proper, wholesale reboot of 'Connecting Troubled Souls'. It's no secret I fell out of the fandom and writing in general for a long time now, a big part of the reason I couldn't finish anything. This one will be a completed project, with two chapters already more or less finished after this one.
Looking back on Star Vs as a show, I genuinely think I was too harsh on the later seasons. And I hope this story respects and honors the show's legacy that it clearly left upon me, you all and the talented writers in the fic scene today.
I'll be looking forward to feedback from you all and I hope you stick with me on this weird and wild wide.
