Yo!

The next chapter isn't done yet, but I didn't wanna keep you guys waiting forever, so I cut this bit out and turned it into a mini-chapter! Expect the next one on Sunday ^.^! Thank you for your patience!

P.S. The replies to all the reviews will come next week!

Disclaimer: I do not claim the right to Star vs. the Forces of Evil or any of the characters that appear in the show. They belong to Disney and the show's creator, Daron Nefcy. I do, however, claim the right to the plot as well as any original characters that may appear in this fic, and would kindly ask you to inform me should you want to use anything from this fic in your own story. -jolleIQ

Beta read by ElleFreak.

Story cover by Luzz015. Be sure to check her out on DeviantArt!


Star vs. The Forces of Evil: Staring it up!

Chapter 11

Queen's Lament

Part 4.5

Toffee frantically paced around his room. Every now and then, he stole a glance at the clock as if hoping it would make time go faster. He was anxious, very anxious. And above all, worried.

"Come on, come on! What's taking them so long?" he muttered to himself.

Today was the day that he would receive the results of the investigation of the murder of the Mewman royal couple. This meant that it was the day that would determine the fates of both Kingdoms. If the rumours turned out to be true, it would spell disaster and set back peace talks between Mewni and the Monster Alliance by years if not decades. All he wished to do was bridge the gap between the two nations, and the idea of having that dream torn to bits before his eyes was crushing.

He heard a knock and froze in place.

"Ambassador Toffee? You in there?" a voice asked.

"Yes!" Toffee replied and rushed to the door and flung it open. Before him stood a fellow Septatian, orange of skin, clad in shabby armour and clutching a rolled-up letter.

"We've found something," the orange lizard said, bluntly, and handed Toffee the letter.

Toffee stared at it dumbfoundedly for a time, then slit the wax seal holding the scroll together and opened it. His eyes darted from one end of the paper to the other. When he was finished, he wore an expression of shock.

"Is this... true?"

The orange lizard nodded.

"It seems so, yes," the lizard replied and sighed deeply, shaking his head. "You know what the worst part is? I was one duty to be one of the royal couple's escorts that day, but the bastard convinced me he was my replacement!" The orange lizard's lip trembled and he punched a hole into the wall out of pure anger. "I could have stopped this... All of it! I'm sorry..."

Toffee placed a hand on the orange lizard's shoulder.

"Don't beat yourself up about it, General Butterscotch," said Toffee, giving the general a reassuring look. "Nobody blames you for this. I certainly don't."

"Well I do!" Butterscotch mumbled to himself, slapped away Toffee's hand, and stormed off.

Toffee sighed and went over to the magic mirror in his room. Normally, using magic mirrors to contact royals was forbidden, reserved only for those of their kin, or at the very least one had to announce a week or so in advance, but given the circumstances and his friendship with the young Mewman Queen, he could afford to bend the rules every now and then.

Especially now.

He clapped his hands twice to activate the mirror.

Nothing.

"Hmm?" Toffee wondered and clapped a second time.

Still nothing.

"That's odd," he muttered and tapped the mirror with his knuckles in hopes of getting at least some response from it, but all he could see was his own reflection and the mirror made no attempt to turn on.

Toffee sighed.

"Great..."

He looked at the letter in his hand, rolled it up, went over to one of the candles and poured a drop of wax on the scroll to re-seal it, pocketed it, and marched out of his room and headed straight for the portal master's quarters. Since Ula and Tethys were on Mewni, he had to convince the portal master to create a traversable portal to take him there. Without dimensional scissors or proper magic, he had to ask the portal master to open one for him.

He arrived at the man's door, neatly fastened his bowtie, and knocked. On the inside, he could hear the sound of rustling and footfalls. Soon enough, the door opened and forth stepped an old kobold dressed in shabby robes. He eyed Toffee from head to toe, snorted, and asked, "Yes?"

"I need you to open a portal to Mewni." The kobold blinked. "Now."

"Now?"

"Yes, now."

"Portals are reserved for the Royals. Get lost." The kobold tried to shut the door but Toffee reacted quickly and blocked it with his foot. The Kobold growled at him. "Didn't you hear what I said, boy?"

"I did, but this is urgent," Toffee calmly explained. The Kobold snorted and flung the door open.

"What do you need a portal for?"

"I must convey an important message to Queen Moon of Mewni, and I must do it without further delay."

"If it's so urgent, why don't you just call her?" the Kobold asked, grumpy. "You're an ambassador, right? You have a magic mirror, don't you? Just call her, you nitwit!"

"I've tried but it won't work!" replied Toffee, and the Kobold's eyes widened.

"Won't work? Blah! Humbug!" he exclaimed. "You're probably too stupid to turn it on!"

"Listen," Toffee began, slowly losing his patience with the rude creature. "I've tried turning it on but it won't work! Maybe I'm doing something wrong, I don't know! But the fact of the matter is that unless I don't go to Mewni this instant and give Queen Moon this letter-" Toffee pointed at the scroll in his hand. "-people may die! So just listen to me and open that portal!"

The Kobold eyed him, sceptically, then snorted.

"Fine! I'll open a portal to Mewni, just stop bugging me!" The Kobold turned around and mumbled, "Lousy kids..." then clasped his hands together. Soon enough, his eyes and hands glowed a purple colour. He spun his head around. "Where exactly do you want this portal to take you?"

"To the castle, as close as you can."

Thanks to the ongoing Monster-Mewman Goodwill Ball that Moon was presently hosting, many monsters and Mewmans who already shared the mindset of ending the senseless conflict had to come to Castle Butterfly to attend the ball, so the magical barriers preventing any unauthorized outsiders from entering Mewni were lifted. The only place that was still under the barrier's protection was the castle itself.

Toffee sighed.

He almost regretted not accepting Moon's invitation to the ball some days earlier. The heavens knew he needed a break. However, he couldn't possibly find leisure while the investigation was ongoing.

The Portal Master closed his eyes and focused the magic in his palms, then drew a circle in the air. Once it was connected, the portal opened and Toffee could see Castle Butterfly on the other end.

"There," said the Portal Master, then took out a pipe and put it to his mouth, then rummaged through one of his pockets and took out a mixture of dried herbs, which he lit and inhaled a breath of smoke.

"I thank you, Portal Master."

"Bah! Just scram already!" the Kobold replied, harshly, puffing smoke, and Toffee stepped through the portal without any further comment.

Immediately upon coming through at the other end, water splashed on his face.

"Ahg-!" he exclaimed, startled, and began brushing it off his eyes.

Rain? he wondered. Everything had looked sunny from the other end of the portal.

He then heard a scream. Then another. And another.

The lizard then felt a tugging on his leg. He opened his eyes and stared with a gaping jaw and eyes. The person tugging him was a young monster boy dressed in formal attire. The young lad had beads of sweat on his face and bulging moist eyes. His clothes were soaked in blood and Toffee nearly puked when he saw it: the boy's legs were missing and there was a trail of blood behind him. Toffee's bottom lip quivered upon realising that the boy, no older than eight or nine, had dragged himself across the ground. A sudden realization hit the lizard. He looked at his hands; blood red.

"What's-"

"...please..." the boy coughed viciously and spat blood all over Toffee's suit. "Help m-" the monster boy never finished his sentence as a sword was plunged through his chest and a splash of fresh blood splashed on Toffee, who could only stare with his eyes frozen open. Toffee gazed with gaping horror as the monster-boy's last flicker of life vanished and he died under his feet. He then aimed his gaze upward and saw a Mewman soldier, smiling an evil grin. The soldier twisted the sword and Toffee could hear the gruesome sound of bones cracking. The man then pulled the sword out of the twitching body and aimed his gaze at a horrified Toffee, who took a step backwards and stumbled and fell onto his bottom.

"You're next, monster!"

To be continued...


Note: This happens in between Part 5, so everything will be explained (next week) ^.^!

Until then, reviews are more than welcome!

See ya!