Star vs The Forces of PTSD Chapter 2: Take Two, a star vs. the forces of evil fanfic

Some time after Lint Catcher and before Sweet Dreams:

The screams had returned to Butterfly Castle ... and doubled.

Star's nights were filled with terror. It began several days after Marco returned to Earth. Her shouts and screams would echo through the castle on many a night, ceasing only when she awoke drenched in sweat. She would drift back into a restless sleep only with great difficulty. When Star began dating Tom the frequency of the night terrors diminished, but did not cease entirely.

When Marco returned to Mewni and became Star's squire, Star's parents thought those troubled nights would be over. But to their horror they learned that many of Marco's nights were filled with terrors as well, and they triggered the return of Star's, usually on the same nights. Star had effectively been raised by her bodyguards, not the royal parents, and having thoroughly repressed her own trauma, Moon was at a loss for what to do for her child. She was at an even greater loss for what to do for Marco. Worse, for reasons Moon did not understand, Star and Marco were not helping each other with their problem; they did not seem to be communicating about it at all.

In his room, Marco writhed in his sleep, covered in sweat, shouting his fear. Marco awoke, leaping up in bed into a fighting stance, his heart bursting with loss. "No!" he sobbed.

Seeing he was in his room, he lay back down on his bed, breathing hard. He thought about his most frequent recurring nightmare, which began when he returned to Mewni. He dreamed Toffee was back and he and Star and Tom were fighting him and his monsters. Star could not find her wand. While Tom and Star were distracted by the other monsters, Toffee attacked unnoticed. Tom was the closest, so he moved to save Tom first. He was too late to save Star. In a quiet, plaintive, voice he said "why do I save Tom first? Tom's a demon, he could withstand the attack." Marco covered his face with his hands. "I want Star."

He heard screams through the door. He knew what they were, and he knew he could no longer pretend it was someone else's concern. For both their sakes.

Marco discreetly knocked on Star's bedroom door, and quietly opened it. "Star?" he asked.

She was still in a fitful sleep. Marco turned on the light. As Marco approached the bed where Star writhed and whimpered, Star's cheek hearts began to glow. Marco recognized it from the time she powered up to break the crystal cage in which Toffee had imprisoned him. He thought this couldn't be good, without the wand to direct her power.

"No!" Star sobbed in her sleep. "THERMONUCLEAR BUTTERFLY ..."

Marco desperately shook his friend. "Star! Wake up!" he yelled.

Star awoke in confusion. "Marco? Marco!"

"Yes. I ..." he said, releasing her and sitting down on the edge of the bed. They could not meet each other's gaze. Star sat up.

"Marco," Star said, "I keep dreaming such horrible things. The thing I dream most ... I dream that Toffee is back and you and Tom and I are fighting him and his monsters. I can't find my wand. While the two of you are distracted by the other monsters, Toffee attacks unnoticed. Tom is the closest, so I move to save him first." Her voice became quiet, plaintive, "but I'm too late to save you. Why do I save Tom first? Tom's a demon, he could withstand the attack." She buried her face in her hands. "The nightmare started after you came back."

Marco was too shocked to respond.

Star sobbed for a minute. She sniffled and asked "why is this happening? I defeated a monster and saved the kingdom and here I am crying in bed."

Star's anger swelled.

"I am an independent woman with fists like hammers! I will FIGHT this ..."

"No Star," Marco interrupted. "WE will fight this. Together. I am having the exact same nightmare. Except I save Tom, and cannot save you. And the nightmare started for me when I came back."

Star could not believe it. Marco was having the exact ... same ... nightmare? And they both started having it at the same time? How was this possible? And why had he not reached out to her? She felt a pang of guilt. Why had she not reached out to him? Had things changed so much since that darn Ruberiot ruined everything? When she was queen there would be the first public execution in over a century. She quickly pushed the thought away, ashamed.

Star and Marco sat silently for a few more moments. Finally Marco looked up into Star's eyes, which welled up with tears. Star noticed the dark circles under his eyes, matching the ones under her own. It was too much. Star grabbed Marco and hugged him hard.

The floodgates opened.

Star whispered of how she was terrified when she cast the Whispering Spell on Ludo's Wand, not knowing where she would go if it worked, or even whether it would work at all. She feared she might be killed, and that dying in the explosion would hurt. She talked of her time trapped in the magic with Toffee. Of how she feared that she could not escape, that she would die, and worst of all, despairing that she would never see her best friend again. She talked of the horrible pain endured to dip down to escape the magic, and the pleasure and horror of blasting Toffee to pieces, only to see his quivering remains still living, if temporarily.

Marco whispered to her of how he thought he had watched Star commit suicide by blowing herself up, having cast the Whispering Spell on Ludo's wand. He spoke of the joy of learning a few minutes later she was alive inside Ludo somehow, only to be told by the resurrected Toffee that he had murdered Star. He told her of punching through Toffee's still soft body, to no effect, after watching Moon damage herself in a failed attempt to kill Toffee with dark magic. Of the pain from Toffee's retaliation. He described how he had felt utterly helpless and empty, unable to even punish the monster who had murdered his best friend. And of the awe and horror of seeing Toffee blasted to pieces, only to see his quivering remains still living, if temporarily.

Marco sighed; he didn't want to let go, but he was her squire and best friend, not her boyfriend. He pulled away.

"I should go, and you should call Tom," he said.

"No," Star replied. "Right now I don't need my boy friend, I need my best friend."

Marco thought briefly of Jackie with a touch of wistfulness. "So do I. I'll stay."

They looked away from each other, the flush of embarrassment on their cheeks for not speaking sooner.

Marco reached under the bed and pulled out their friendship snuggly. They moved to sit beside each other with their backs against the headboard, leaving a discreet space between them. Marco draped the blanket over the two of them.

"I'm your best friend," Marco said quietly. "Watching you in your sleep is a little creepy, but you could talk me into it, for this or any other reason. I like keeping you safe."

"As you're also my squire I could always order you," she replied sleepily. "Conscience clear."

Some time later, the door slowly opened. It was Rafael. Moon and River had felt the problem had reached the point where they had to act, and unknown to Marco had brought Rafael and Angie to Mewni during the day. When the terrors began they would go to Marco to help, and take him home if need be. When the four of them had reached their children's rooms, they discovered that Marco had finally taken the initiative and gone to Star. Rafael sent the Butterflys back to their bed chamber, left his wife in Marco's room, and promised to watch over the two. When he could no longer hear any talking, he chose to enter quietly without knocking, hoping they had finally achieved a peaceful sleep.

He heard quiet, measured, breathing. He looked to Star's bed. Star and Marco were asleep quietly for the first time in weeks. In their sleep they had moved to support each other like they did when awake, leaning against each other beneath their blanket. Star's head rested lightly on Marco's shoulder, while Marco's rested against Star's head. Rafael felt a tightness in his chest. They had done so much that it was easy to forget these two were just 14 year old children, and they were in pain. He fervently hoped they were now on the road to healing, and no more horrors were in their future.

Rafael found a chair, then doused the light. He stayed in the room to maintain the proprieties, and to watch protectively over his son and this goofy magical princess from another dimension. He had come to think of her as his daughter over the time she spent with his family.

As he watched them, the clouds in the sky parted. He marveled at the soft red light of the crescent moon that filtered through the window and fell on his sleeping children. After a few minutes, he noticed that Star's cheek hearts were softly glowing. He fancied that he could see the glowing shape of the crescent moon on both his son's cheeks.

As in Take One, the parents seem overly lax and let things go on for too long. See the comments at the end of Take One.

Stay Amazing!