"Look I have some questions for you, and you are not leaving this city until they are answered," the television blared before the two snack-stoned teens lounging in their P.J's on a Saturday afternoon. Star stifled a small laugh at the movie before nestling further into Marcos good side, enjoying the warmth he provided as well as his usual, intoxicating smell. It had been a week since their incident with time loops and such, and lately, it was time for some due RR. Marcos parents had left two days ago to visit family, trusting Star to look after him, and keep close to him she would.
"I can't believe you guys have so much to explore underground," Star began, enjoying some chocolate strawberries, "Cave systems, giant lobsters, burning fireflies, the people down there totally have magic, and no one even knows about it!" She noticed a forced silence from her counterpart, and promptly poked his cheek. "Heeeeey, we should totally go to Atlantis some time, babe," she offered with a tight grin.
Marco broke face and snorted at that, shaking his head. "For the last time, goofball, it's just a movie. Atlantis isn't real, and none of this stuff actually happened." He meant to sound more stout in his response, but his sarcastic demeanor easily seeped through for the third time that afternoon. Star chuckled and curled up against him tighter, hugging his good right arm closer.
"I know, dummy. Seen it five times with you already. Buuut, I can't resist a good chance to mess with ya," she answered softly. Marco couldn't help but smile at that as the movie played on, resting his head atop Stars. "I think you like bugging me a bit too much for your own good. I mean, isn't there a whole underwater city of merfolk on Mewni?," he offered back. Star simply nodded and smiled to herself as the two characters on screen began their swim for answers.
Ignoring his question, Star commited to her act. "Ya know what I think, Marco? I think the nervous guy should totally make a move on the princess," she remarked, giving his hand a squeeze. He returned the gesture and replied, "Why do you say that? They hardly know each other. And they come from two super different worlds."
Star shrugged against his side and smiled blissfully, her cheeks flush already. "I dunno, worked out for me." She could practically hear Marcos big dumb brain trying to decipher her detailed message for hidden meaning. In truth, she found it adorable. "Ehhh, Milo's kind of a wimp though. He'd be in way over his head trying to handle a girl like her, but if he gets the girl, I can agree that being with a princess would be worth it."
Star nestled even closer to him, practically smushing into his side and resting her head on his shoulder. She gave him a soft bite on the neck and smiled to herself as she went on, noting, "Milo might be… a bit of a wimp, but he still saves the girl, never gives up, and he's super brave," she listed on her fingers, "He might not be the strongest, but he's still a hero."
"I thought you didn't need a hero," Marco whispered into her ear, giving Star goosebumps in all the right places. She jabbed his side and laughed, but promptly began to apologize when she noticed it had been a bit too close to his old wound. "Sorry, about that. I forgot you're still a bit of a wimp, Diaz," she offered with a giggle.
Marcos unamused, deadpan expression was read loud and clear by Star, who immediately began to backtrack. "Not like, super wimpy, ya know, just like, cute wimpy. Sexy wimpy, even. Y'know, you can be- AGGHH -COOL WIMPY!" she finished in a shout as Marco pulled her closer, jabbing her back in the ribs. Star fell on top of him as he laid back, resting his slung arm to the side as Star caught her breath against his chest. "Sorry, did I hit a neeerve?" she asked, a sly grin on her face before meeting him with a kiss.
Marco held her close, enjoying the warmth of their kiss and the soft touch of her lips for a moment before the two separated. "Not at all, Stardust. Just giving me more and more reasons to not go easy on you later." Star nearly shuddered at the use of his pet name for her, and pulled him into another kiss. This time, she held nothing back, letting her tongue dance with his as their breathing began to match the others.
Star deepened the kiss further as her hands began to explore his abbs, enjoying every moment of their embrace. Marco pulled her closer, accepting her request for closeness and began to squeeze and grope at her rear when he abruptly sucked in a breath of air through his teeth. Star looked down and realized her hands were resting on the still healing wound in his chest, recoiling sharply and sending the two of them over the couches edge.
"Sorry! Sorry, Marco!" she shouted, pulling herself together and assessing him for damages. Marco chuckled and grabbed her hand, pulling her down to his level with a weak grin. His voice a little raspy, he managed to say, "Don't worry about it, I'm a pretty tough wimp, actually."
Star bit her lip and leaned lower, draping herself delicately over him as he gazed up into her beautiful blue eyes. "You know what I think?" she suddenly asked, her voice as soft as silk, and her breath warm against his neck, "When you asked for a week of recovery, I thought you were crazy to make me wait for summa you. But now, mamas done waiting, Macho Man. So let's skip the cutesy foreplay this time, yeah?" Marcos cheeks flushed beat red, and he could swear that every intention she had for him was pinging in the back of his head. Maybe making her wait this long was a bad call.
Stealing himself against a frontal assault, Marco wrapped his arm around her and prepared for the best Recovery Relationship Saturday of his life, when a familiar tearing sound captured both of their attentions. Looking up, they found a purple, hexagonal portal being opened in front of the T.V., before two bolts of blue magic shot out, crystallization the couch cushions they had just been using.
The two immediately faced one another and nodded, their fears affirmed. "Rhombulus," they said in unison. Star was the first to her feet, her wand blade already drawn, with Marco following suit immediately after. After he shifted his scissors to sword, he remained standing before the portal, with Star circling wide around it, her blade glistening and ready.
"-told you already, I got em!" A deep voice boasted as a green, snake-skinned man stepped through the portal. He had a massive crystal for a head, one lone eye at the center of it, and a billowing cape over his bare shoulders. But the most captivating detail about him was that he simply had two snakes where his arms should have been.
"Hey Rhombulus," Star offered, stepping behind him and resting the tip of her blade against his back, "long time no see. Whatcha been up to?" His arms immediately shot into the air, the snakes he used as hands sharing his expression of immediate surprise. "UH...I surrender!" he shouted, earning an unamused glare from Marco.
"Yeah, we gathered that," Marco grumbled, clearly in no mood to be so rudely interrupted, "Mind telling us what you're doing here?" Rhombulous shook his head and lowered his arms, crossing the snakes in what appeared to be resolve. "I'm here to collect you and the princess for imprisonment. You're gonna be crystalized till your butts fall off," he boasted proudly.
Star and Marco shared a confused glance, Marco using his sword as a makeshift cane to step closer. "What are we being tried for? You can't just kidnap us, you know." Rhombulus maintained an opaque expression before shaking his head in refusal. "I don't disclose classified information to criminals. Surrender or else." Marco groaned and held his face in annoyance. There was something familiar about this encounter, but every encounter with Rhombulus was annoying, so it was hard to tell what. "How are you supposed to arrest us if we don't know what the crimes were?"
Rhombulus made to speak, but Star stepped around him and lowered her wand, throwing an arm over his shoulder. "Rhombulus. Buddy," she began in a chill note, not giving away any semblance of impatience. She remembered his last visit, but she was done wasting time trying to figure out why. "It's been… mmm, I dunno. Two weeks, Marco?" she asked, earning a short nod from him, "Let's go with two weeks, since I've gotten to really cut loose with that hunk over there. And now, right before I make it to the bone zone...you show up out of nowhere and RUIN MY AFTERNOON!" Rhombulus flinched and fell back into the T.v, fumbling for footing.
"WHAT WAS SO FUCKING IMPORTANT THAT YOU HAD TO BOTHER ME RIGHT BEFORE-" Stars voice was a tempest in its own right, but Rhumbulus' shout of fear just barely topped it, throwing up two snakes to keep the flaming princess at bay. "I wasn't actually gonna crustalize you! I just wanted you to confess that you crystalized Lekmet and you're corrupting the magic!"
Stars rolling thunder of anger was immediately grounded in light of this new revelation. Immediately trading a glance with Marco, she found him just as confused. "Crystalized...Lekmet? Rhombulus what are you talking about? You're the only one who can crystalize things!" she returned. Rhombulous stood up, carefully avoiding Star, and shook his head. "I didn't do it, I swear. One minute he's going on about the cost of death, and the next, he's in a crystal. You're the only one with the wand, so until I can figure out whats going on, I wanted you both to come with me."
Marco shook his head, clearly not invested in anything the MHC member was spouting. "I don't buy it. There's no way we're going with you to take the blame for-"
"We'll come quietly," Star announced to the room. Both Rhombulous and Marco shared a mutual "what?" Before Star pulled Marco aside to explain herself, eyeing Rhombulus as she did. "Marco, I remember going with him last time, maybe we can get answers. Find out what Vartek might be doing on a bigger scale."
Marco thought on that for a moment, but shook his head. As oddly rational as that thought was, the risk was too great. They could be blamed for everything, or worse, they'd have to explain themselves to Moon again. "I'm sorry, Star, but we can't go with him. What if he crystallizes us, or we get blamed for everything Varteks been doing?"
Without missing a beat, Star grinned and nodded her head towards the still open portal. "This could give you a chance to make sure Eclipsa is still in a crystal. And this'll paint a bigger picture of what Vartek is doing. We need this, babe." Marco let those prospects roll around in his brain for a moment before nodding in acceptance. "Fine. But the second something goes wrong, we're out," he stated, adjusting his sling and pocketing his scissors.
"Thanks, Marco," Star returned with a hug, nearly cracking his still-mending ribs, "I owe you one. Or ya know...maybe more, depending on how the night goes." Marco let his cheeks flush, ignoring his embarrassment as the two stepped towards Rhombulus and his portal. "Alright, big guy, take us to Lekmet," Star announced, a grin on her face.
"Fine. But no funny business. You step outta line, I put you in a crystal," Rhombulus warned, his snakes staring angrily. Despite being a general moron, Marco thought as he watched the enforcer disappear into the portal, the guy could be pretty intimidating when he wanted to be. Star gestured for Marco to go next, but when he tried to put a foot through the portal, he was met with zero resistance, and nearly fell into the television on the other side.
"What happened?" Star asked, stepping over him and pulling him carefully to his feet. Marco shook his head and tried passing an arm through the still ghostly portal. "I don't know. It's like it's not even there. Try it," he offered, prompting Star to poke her hand through. It disappeared from view. She gave him a confused shrug as he tried coming up with ideas, until a familiar warning returned to her mind.
'-or the universe will move to correct things itself,' Omnitraxus' voice echoed. Star groaned out loud and pulled Marco back from fruitlessly trying to figure out the portal. Even ones he cut himself werent working. "What is it? You got something?" he asked impatiently, sure that Rhombulus would return any second now to ask what the deal was.
"Kinda," Star muttered, pressing her lips together, "You can't come with me." Marcos eyes widened before he rested his right arm on his hip. He did not look like he accepted that. "Like hell I'm not. Star, we don't even know what Rhombulus is up to, I can't just let you go by yourself."
"Well, you don't have a choice," Star fired back, "Remember what Omnitraxus said, about things fixing themselves? Well, this is one of those things. You weren't there last time, or at least conscious of it, so the universe isn't letting you in." The image of Marco being used as a chair and a table for a tea party flashed through her mind, giving her a slight grin at the idea. "Unless you wanna go as a crystal, that is."
His unamused frown answered that question immediately. Letting out a sigh of resignation, Marco flopped down on the couch and crossed his arms. "I'm not going if I'm trapped in a rock. And I say you shouldn't risk going alone." Star let out a chuckle and strolled over to him, straightening his collar and kissing his forehead. "I'll be back in a flash, babe. I promise. You stay here, look pretty, and keep the couch warm for-" she stopped herself when she realized that most of the remaining couch space was now crystallized.
"Okay well, I'll be right back, and I'll tell you everything," she offered, kissing him once more, this time on the lips, and answered with a contented sigh. After a quick 'Radiant Shadow Transform' on them both, donning their usual attire, she added, "And no pouting,"
"Fine," he finally relented, jerking his head toward the portal and handing her his pair of scissors. "In case you have to get out fast. Just be quick, okay? I don't trust him." Star stifled a laugh and stood before the portal before giving Marco a sultry grin. "Oh don't you worry about me. When I get back, I wanna take your Vintal body for a test drive at the cabin.
Marco gulped and nodded, a mix of excitement and fear running through him as Star blew him a kiss and stepped through the portal. After it had closed, leaving the room in a new silence since Rhombulus had broken the T.V., Marco let out a contented sigh and closed his eyes.
Three days ago, Star had offered to take him to the healing spring in the Neverzone, and to meet the people of Minerva Village, but he had kindly refused, instead opting to let her try out some healing magic on him. Some new wounds, and a lot of spent energy later, he could feel his ribs mending, and the scar tissue on his chest beginning to subside. Now, the process was still taking its toll, draining him immensely, but his recovery time would be reduced to two weeks, tops.
He was about to finally let the cool embrace of sleep take hold of him, when the familiar sound of a portal alerted him to a new arrival.
"Well, I gotta admit that was pretty-" he began, but stopped the moment the sound of a chainsaw hit his ears. Marco shot up, ignoring the searing pain in his ribs to find Rasticore standing before him, smiling from ear to ear. As he killed the chainsaw, Rasticore gestured towards the portal as a lone figure stepped through, her expression a complete opposite to the first visitor. Through her tight lips and thick scowl, she spoke in a growl.
"Where. Is. Princess Butterfly."
O - O - O - O - O - O - O
Star stepped through the hexagonal portal and found herself in an all too familiar landscape littered with crystal formations stories tall, with their frozen prisoners not going unnoticed. Looking around, she took in the layout of the land, noting prime hiding spots if things got dicey, when she suddenly found herself staring at one prisoner in particular: Eclipsa.
She was frozen just as she had been in the glimpse Omnitraxus had shown her, her right hand held out delicately, and her left waiting patiently by her side. Her smile was as calm and collected as the night sky between two purple spades, and it was almost comforting to Star to see her so at peace with her position. She remembered how close the two became later, but she also knew what her position would make her do when she had to make tough choices.
"Hey, I'm not doing a tour of the place, let's go," Rhombulus grumbled, motioning for Star to follow. As she approached what was obviously his home, a flat, wide crystal under a curving staircase beside a makeshift gym, she noticed one figure standing out. Lekmet, an anthropomorphic goat-man with the wings of a bat, was frozen inside a crystal, a smile still on his fuzzy face. Star tossed Rhombulus a curious look, but he just glared at her and approached his master.
"So, I was like, ya know. Working out and stuff, lifting some crazy heavyweights, like, suuuper heavy stuff you wouldn't-" he began, but Star cut him off with an impatient frown. "I get it. Lifting weights. What happened?"
"Right," Rhombulus mumbled, fidgeting with his snake hands. "Look, I didn't crystallize him or nuthin', I just looked up and he was like this. No noise, no screams, just...silence." Star nodded and took a step closer to the crystallized goat man, noting his strangely calm expression and body language. There was no sign of a struggle, and he seemed to be in the middle of saying something. "Okay," Star began, turning around and giving Rhombulus a disinterested look, "I believe you didn't do it on purpose, but why do you think Marco or I did it?"
"Well, who else coulda done it?" Rhombulus asked defensively. Star gave him a deadpan look, suggesting it was the only one of the two who was capable of doing it, and the two remained locked in a staredown until he got the hint. "I didn't do it," he stated once more.
"And like I said, I believe you. But he's in a crystal, big guy. So somehow, your magic did something."
"I said I didn't do anything!" Rhombulus yelled, causing Star to subconsciously reach for her wand, its bulb already glowing with power. When he saw her readying her weapon, Rhombulus held up his hands and rolled his eye. "Besides, you two are the ones up to some sneaky business, so if it was one of us, I say it was you two."
Star pressed her lips together, unsure of how much of their "sneaky business" he actually knew about, and decided it best to play coy. "What uhh, what have you heard?" She asked softly.
Rhombulus shook his head and crossed his arms, taking a seat at a crystal table set for tea time. "No way. I'm not supposed to tell you anything about the secret meetings we've had about the corruption and the bad guys." Star let her eyes widen at his refusal, wordlessly sitting down across from him. After a passing moment of silence, she leaned forward and met his eye. "What secret meetings, exactly?" she asked.
Rhombulus' eye shot wide open as he uncurled his arms and bashed his head against the table, nearly destroying a teacup. "DAMNIT! No no no, that won't work on me twice, Princess! I don't know how you got me to talk about it, but it won't work again!"
"What?" Star asked, now clearly amused. She gave him a sincere smile and straightened up. "I dunno what you mean. You were just telling me about the corruption… that we both totally know about. Ya know, the whole, break the universe thing?" She added hopefully. Rhombulus glared at her, his cold stare piercing into her soul for what felt like a lifetime before he finally spoke. "I'm not. Telling you. About the corruption."
Star sighed and shook her head, pouring herself a cup of tea. She wasn't much of a tea drinker, but if it made her look less intrusive, anything was worth a try. All belts were off now. If she could convince Marco to let her go alone, after everything that had happened lately, surely she could get Rhombulus to spill the beans.
"Look, if you really didn't freeze Lekmet, then I wanna help, big guy. But if you want me to help, I need to know what's going on with the magic, and what you know about the curruption. Help me help you, okay?" She asked, meeting his gaze before sipping some of her tea. It tasted like dirt and sweat, but she forced it down, hoping the gesture would help her standing.
She couldn't read much from his expression, given that he didn't have one, but she could at least tell he was thinking about it. Finally, after a moment of mulling it over, Rhombulus let out a weary sigh. "Whatever. Ever since Queen Moon sent you to Earth, there's been a constant spread of corrupted magic. Even with magic getting weaker, and draining from the universe, it's still spreading!" He yelled, banging his fists against the crystal. Star almost felt bad for two snakes, but let him continue anyway.
"And from what we can tell, the corruption is centered around the two of you. It always follows you. So when Lekmet was crystalized without me knowing about it, you two were the first people on my list," Rhombulus said proudly. "So what are you two planning?" He waited for Star to argue, but she seemed deep in thought, like she was trying to remember something. She stood up and walked over to Lekmet, analyzing his calm expression further.
"We didn't have anything to do with this," she answered, off-handedly. Something wasn't right about Lekmet, but she couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was. "What if this wasn't done by anyone at all?" She asked, turning to face him once more.
Rhombulous shot her an incredulous look that even the snakes seemed to share. "What the heck kinda question is that? Someone had to do it!" he shouted. His left hand shook its head, now giving Star a more inquisitive stare. "It sssoundssss like you're jussst trying to throw ussss off," it hissed.
"Rhombulus, trust me. Marco and I want to stop the corruption more than anyone else in the universe. But… we can't do that right now." Star sat back down across from him, and he began to notice a growing look of unease across her face. "I don't know exactly what's happening with magic lately, but you have to trust me when I say that we're going to fix it," she finished, eyeing him sincerely. Crossing his arms, Rhombulus didn't seem to buy it. "You guys have been like, all we talk about at our meetings. Why should I trust that you're not the ones behind the corruption? Everything points to it being the two of you."
Star groaned aloud and let her shoulders sag. This was going nowhere fast, and she didn't have time to be wasted trying to convince the stupidest MHC member of her innocence. "What can I do to prove that I'm not behind it?"
"Fix it," Rhombulus barked immediately. The snakes both gave him confused stares, matched by Star, but he held true. "If you're not behind it, then you can fix it."
"I will," Star answered back, standing from the table and glaring at the Crystal enforcer before her. "And when I do, you'll be the first person I ressurect, just so i can rub it in that stupid crystal face of yours that we're not behind this!" Rhombulous stood to answer her challenge, but just before he could utter a word, the sound of rushing water behind him drew both of their attention.
The crystal surrounding Lekmet began to dissolve to a viscous liquid before their eyes, freeing him from his unknown prison with little more than a confused glance around the room to show for it."
"Blaaahahahhhhaaa!" he shouted to Rhombulus as the crystal finished dissolving. Rhombulus' eyeshot wide open as he stammered for a response. "L-l-l-lekmet! I uh...I can explain everything! You see, I was just lifting some-"
"Blahahahaaahahahh!" Lekmet cried put, pointing one of his hoofed hands at Star. His expression, though goat-like and hard to read, showed alarm, and impatience from what she could tell. Rhombulus looked around nervously. Star couldn't understand what the old goat was saying, but from the enforcers' reaction, it wasn't good.
"No! I didn't kidnap the princess! I brought her here because you got crystalized without me knowing about it. If anyone could have done that, it's those two!" Lekmet stared at rhombulus, clearly trying to find out how much of that was true when Star stepped forward.
"It's true, Rhombulus didn't kidnap me… exactly. And I don't think he froze you. But we're trying to figure out how you might have been-"
"Blahahhahahahahaaa!" came his loud interruption. Star glanced at Rhombulus for a translation, but the crystal enforcer was staring at her already. "He says you need to leave, and that he will discuss this with Queen Moon and the Magical high commission at a later date."
"What?!" Star shrieked, eyes nearly ablaze with blue flames as her hand rippled with green energy. "So you mean to tell me you came in guns blazing, blamed me for this, and now you're gonna go tell my mom and the Magical High Commission that-"
"Blahhhahahaha!" Lekemt bleated. He didn't look as angry now, especially compared to Star, but his expression was one of marked curiosity. "He says you're not to blame, that something greater is at work here. He asks again that you leave at once, and wishes you a good day." Stars hair lit ablaze with blue fire, though her eyes glowed a brilliant green.
"I WAS HAVING-" Star cut herself off, mentally forcing the flames down and fixing her eyes on Rhombulus, rather than Lekmet. She knew who she was really mad at. "I was having a good afternoon until you showed up and told me I was being investigated!" Rhombulus chanced a sheepish glance at Lekmet but found his superior already glaring at him harshly.
"Next time you need me for something," Star warned, her eyes fixed on Rhombulus, "don't need me. I've got bigger fish than you to deal with on a good day." Without so much as another word, she cut open a portal beside her with Marcos scissors, giving the crystal enforcer one last glare before disappearing to the other side.
"Blaahahhaha?" Lekmet bleated softly, raising an eyebrow at his counterpart. Rhombulus met his gaze and nodded, his hands giving him curious stares. "Yeah, I saw it."
O - O - O - O - O - O - O
"Look, I already told you: I don't know where she is, or when she'll be back," Marco breathed, glaring up at Rasticore with murderous intent, "But I'd be happy to take a message for you if you'd like." The green septarian only grinned and reached forward, pressing the tip of his chainsaw firmly against the center of Marco's chest, making the boy yell out in pain from his tied position in his seat.
"How about I cut your head clean off, kid? Could you relay that to her?" He asked with a growl. Marco hissed in pain as a quiet voice spoke up behind the mercenary. "Do be careful not to hurt him too badly. Mistress would be very displeased if she lost her leverage." The small, crystal-eyed hunchback stayed a good distance away, wisely choosing not to underestimate the tied up boy before him
"Yeah, yeah. Just tryna have some fun is all. Where'd she go anyway?" Gemini gave him a short shrug before taking a look around the living room.
"Oh, who knows. She's likely still perusing the girls bedroom, or perhaps the water closet. Regardless, we still have a job to do," he finished, taking a step closer to Marco and lifting the boy's chin to face him. "Dear boy, we don't wish to hurt the poor girl, Mistress only wishes to speak to her you know. Perhaps we can even help you to get back at the sour man that did...this…to you," he finished, gesturing to Marco's wounds.
Rasticore pulled the chainsaw back a bit, inspecting his captives' many scars and bandages. He'd be lying to say he wasn't impressed by the fortitude they boy had, but his patience didn't match, unfortunately. Marco forced a cough, gritting his teeth as he spoke to Gemini. "You guys must be even stupider this time around… *cough* if you think I'd trust you with her for a second."
Before Gemini could utter a word, a smooth, feminine voice echoed from the stairs as the woman of his nightmares came into view. "And you seem to have lost more than just your fighting spirit to think that you have any semblance of a choice in the matter, boy," she hissed. Marco saw images flash through his mind of what this monster was truly capable of, before struggling to speak. "Heinous, it's so nice to see you again," he said with a pointed glare, "Can I get you anything? Some water? Maybe a little 'out of my damn house'?"
Miss Heinous let her left eye twitch only once before seating herself across from him, waving for Rasticore and Gemini to back off. Marco shifted to sit upright, not meeting Heinous' glare. "Marco, was it? I believe that's the name that little wretch used for you when you demolished the sanctity of my enterprise and helped her 'relieve' me from my position. Either way, I have an interesting proposition for both of you."
Marco tested the ropes binding his hands as he let out an exaggerated groan. "What, do you want an apology video again? Or do you only want me to dress in drag for you? Honestly, I don't-" Heinous struck him with such force, his chair was knocked over as she stood over him, her eyes burning with anger. "What I want, Marco, is for you both to suffer as I have. I want that snot-nosed brat to pay for what she has done to my facility! To my reputation! I want you both to be broken in such a manner that you have no hope of recovery."
She paused, looking him over as Rasticore set his chair upright and stood guard beside him. A small grin spread across her lips before she shook her head in dismissal. "But I see now that someone has already beaten me to it. So I have a different proposition in mind."
"And what might that be? Because let me tell you something, Heinous," Marco growled, silently undoing the bonds on his hands before rising from his chair. No one else in the room breathed. "There are people out there that want us dead. People a fuck of a lot scarier than you or your little goonies. So you better ask yourself, 'what do I bring to the table?', before things start to get ugly fast."
Rasticore made to advance, but Gemini held out his arm and stopped him, his one remaining eye trained on Heinous. She didn't seem at all threatened or put off, rather, she simply seemed more interested. "I bring a great many things to the table, boy. For instance," she produced a small dagger, holding it just above the skin of Marco's throat before he could move. The two were locked in silence as neither dared to speak, just as the sound of a portal opening filled the room.
Soft orange light lit up the space around them as Star stepped through, her face displaying a new level of annoyance. Just as the swirling orange aether closed behind her, however, her eyes widened at the sight, and her hand instinctively produced her wand, already in sword form before anyone could react. "What. The hell. Do you think. You're doing?" Star asked. Her tone was venomous, and her glare just as deadly.
"Star," Marco whispered, a cautious gaze on his face as short cackles of green energy began to illuminate her wand, "I have this under control, just calm-"
"I'm way past calm right now, babe! I'VE HAD IT WITH EVERYONE RUINING MY DAY WITH YOU!" Her voice boomed throughout the house, making even Rasticore back up in caution. Heinous grinned, despite her position and held the dagger closer to Marcos neck. "Star Butterfly. So nice to see you again since you nearly killed me at St. Olgas. How have you been?"
"Murderous," Star grumbled, her cheek marks skulls to match her intent, "Let Marco go. Now."
"Oh, I will. But first, you're going to do something for me." Gemini stepped forward, his metallic legs clanking together as he walked. Though, despite his clear terror at the princess of Mewni, he managed to hand her a slip of parchment paper, adorned with a seal and covered in scribbles. "You're going to sign that contract, or I'm going to take your warrior's life."
"What's it say?" Marco asked, trying to look past Heinous to gauge Stars reaction. She didn't answer and kept reading. "Star?" Marco asked again.
"Hold on, hun. Still reading," she answered, not looking up from the form before her.
"No worries, take your time," he answered. Heinous looked back at her captive with a confused glare, but Marco ignored her until Star finally finished reading. "It's a contract that says I have to take full responsibility, pay for damages, and enroll for two years at the new St. Olgas."
Heinous frowned, glaring at the princess. "I already know what it says, and you're going to-"
"I wasn't talking to you," Star interrupted, putting her wand in her purse and folding her arms. "I was talking to my boyfriend." Rasticore and Gemini exchanged uneasy looks as Heinous remained in silent shock. "Thanks, Star. Should we get this over with or what?" Marco asked pleasantly, earning a shrug from his girlfriend.
"In a minute. I might wanna blow off some steam though, do you mind?" She asked back. For the first time, Heinous became aware of the ominous blue glow radiating around Stars eyes, and wisely moved to stand behind Marco, the dagger never leaving his throat.
"What's this? Some pitiful attempt at threatening me? Let me remind you that one wrong move and your little-" Before she could finish, Star silenced any attempt at negotiations with the woman who would cause her so much pain. With a crackle of energy, and a loud whoosh, the entire room lit up in blue light as Stars hair was engulfed in flames. The document she was holding was reduced to ash as everyone except Marco took a subconscious step back.
"Ohhh, that's right," Star chuckled, taking a step forward as her hair flowed with the azure flames that began to engulf her, "you don't know just how fucked you all are. It would be funny if it wasn't so sad. Now, you have exactly five seconds, to GET OUT. OF MY HOUSE!" she roared, letting flames roll around her as Gemini and Heinous took another uneasy step back.
"I'm not buying this bullshit light show," Rasticore chuckled, stepping forward with his chainsaw ready, "C'mon you guys, it's just a little-" He never got to finish. Before anyone could even see what happened, Rasticore was reduced to little more than glowing blue ash, and a single, charred arm.
"What...what just happened?" Gemini whispered. No one said a word. Star only let out a soft breath and closed her eyes. Among a silent, dimly-lit room, she let two flaming wings unfurl on her back as her skin began to shift to a newer, pale turquoise. Her eyes ignited in blue fire, with her hair flowing in a fresh, volatile fire before she finally spoke.
"dn səɯıʇ," Star whispered, disappearing in a hot blur of sky blue.
Heinous looked around, but neither Star nor Gemini could be found. She turned about, making to apprehend her only leverage, but Marco was missing as well. A voice behind her drew her attention and illuminated the room once again in soft blue light.
"sıɥʇ ɹoɟ ɓuıʞool?" Star asked, holding up a now unconscious Gemini, and blocking Marco from view behind her wings. She blinked hard, returning her eyes to their normal state, and shouted at Heinous once more. "If you want to keep living your sad, pathetic life, you'll get the hell out of here, SO I CAN SPEND THE REST OF MY DAY, WITH-"
"As if I care about that little welp," Heinous barked before taking a defiant step closer, "kill it if you wish. But before I leave here you will pay for what you've done to me, to my school, and to my legacy!" She shouted.
Star blinked, completely cut off guard by the sentiment that Heinous clearly didn't care about the little man working for her. She wanted to retort something back, but she could only be reminded of Ludo, and his untimely relationship to Toffee, and now Vartek.
"You're the worst," was all Star could mumble, tossing Gemini to the side and hovering menacingly before Heinous, "You could be so much more than this, if you weren't just...so evil."
Heinous startled, unsure how to interpret her enemy's sentiment. Star went on, saying "I'm done, playing nice with people that want to hurt me," she muttered angrily, the blue light returning to her eyes, "You're not going to hurt me, or anyone I care about, anymore."
Heinous' eyes grew wide as Star hovered ever closer, her hands crackling with green energy. "Whatever you plan on doing to me," Heinous growled, "Is a fevered dream compared to what's coming for you. You wait and see, because the demons you've created, will be your own destruction."
"Star," Marco whispered as he stepped forward, "maybe we don't have to-"
"No," she cut him off, a soft flutter of blue flames bursting out as she spoke, "I'm ending this. Now."
Star raised her hands, aiming both palms at her enemy, not an ounce of remorse on her face. Marco withdrew himself as the inevitable seemed to inch closer, but right before the moment that would change everything could strike, the inevitable was put on hold
Marco watched as reality seemed to shift and glitch before his eyes. It was like two flashes of white light, and between them, the entire world around him was torn apart and stitched back together with missing pieces. He caught a glimpse of Star, but she was in her golden form, and Heinous, she was a monster hybrid, her eyes glowing green with hatred. Between them both, however, was a familiar figure he recognized from the void. His copy stood proudly before him, its eyes still ablaze with green, but its entire body was shadowed, and wrong. Like a bad sketch someone was trying desperately to get right.
But just as fast as his vision broke apart, it changed again, and he found himself sitting beside Star on his couch. The room was lit up, and Gemini stood proudly beside Heinous, the two of them staring intently at Star and Marco.
"What...just-" Marco began but Heinous cut him off.
"Thank you for your cooperation with your video, Princess Turdina. I'm sure this will suffice as an apology on your part." Star and Marco exchanged bewildered looks before the princess spoke up. "What video? What apology, I was just about to destroy you when-"
"Yes, I feel quite the same about you, but now that I have what I need I suppose we can forget about your little friend here ransacking my school and starting a revolution. Good day, miss Butterfly." Heinous and Gemini stood proudly to leave, the smaller of the two producing a large dimensional chainsaw and desperately trying to rev it up.
Star stammered for a response, trying to piece together what happened. "But...what about the contract, what about rasticore, and-"
"I don't know what 'contract' you're talking about, but Rasticore is just fine," Heinous mused, pulling a reptilian arm from a duffel bag perched beside her chair, "that business at quest buy went sourly, but I suppose he knew what he was getting himself into. In any case, thank you for your cooperation, Mr. and Mrs. Diaz."
Marco followed her gaze to the empty couch beside them, glancing at Gemini for a reaction, but the little imp paid him no mind. "Yes yes, you as well," Heinous chirped, getting up to leave with Gemini and Rasticore in tote, "Do keep these children under control in the future, I can't handle another outburst on my future school grounds."
Star and Marco stammered to question her, but before they could get her attention, Gemini powered up the chainsaw and cut open an X shaped portal before them. He and Heinous appeared to sit in thin air side by side, not unlike in a vehicle, before hovering forward and disappearing into the portal.
After it closed, Star and Marco both continued to stare forward, too stunned to speak. Whatever they had just witnessed couldn't be explained. A few moments of silence passed, and Marco finally turned to Star and pulled her face to his, forcing her to meet his eyes. "Are you alright? Do you feel okay? What happened?" He demanded in quick succession.
Star stammered to reply but words failed her as she tried to relay to her mouth what her mind had witnessed. Marco took a step back, assessing the room around him as his mind seem to finally catch up to him. "You...you were a butterfly. You almost killed Heinous! What happened to 'don't change anything'?! How are we going to make sure things go right for you to take down toffee, if we kill someone as important as her!?"
"Okay, yes! I would have killed her, Marco! She had you at knife-point! And I'm done with everything getting in the way!" She shouted, now glaring at him, "Vartek killed you, we broke the universe, the magical high commission is blaming us, my mom wants me to tell her the future; well I'm done! I just want..." She caught her breath.
Marco watched carefully as Star fought down the urge to break down in front of him. She was stronger than that, she knew it, so she pressed on. "I just want to be happy again, Marco. I just want to enjoy, being with you….being your girlfriend….being...myself again. Every time we get close to that, things get in the way." She crossed her arms and turned, but Marco grabbed her arm and pulled her back, meeting her with a hug of the same caliber as one her own.
"What are-"
"I'm sorry, Star," he breathed, hot tears falling from his eyes to match her own, "I'm sorry… You don't deserve any of this...I don't deserve you-"
It was her turn to silence him. She met his lips with her own as she sought out the one saving grace in an otherwise cruel world. she let ouout a contented sigh, pressing her tongue through his lips with no resistance and deepening the kiss almost as soon as it had started. Marco, to his credit, tried to pull away after a moment of warm bliss, but Star held him tight, not wanting to let him go so soon. The air between them grew hotter as their mouths went to war, and Marco truly began to understand just how desperately star needed this. Needed him.
He was a hair's breath away from giving her everything she desired, but she slowly pulled away, staring into his brown eyes. "Marco, I...I think-" He stopped her before she could finish.
"How about we just take a break?" He asked gently, holding her hands.
"A break? Marco, a break from what?"
"From all of this," he answered, gesturing around them. "I know things are...going kinda crazy. But let's just take a break from it all. Things'll be okay on their own for a bit, so let's just focus on us for a little while, okay?"
"Marco, I don't know… we have to tell someone about this."
"We will. Just...later. For now, we can just relax, and pretend things are okay," he offered. Star gave him an unsure look, but he pressed further. "My world's falling apart, and all I want to do is keep it safe. But since my world is you, all I want to do is make you happy. Let's go have fun together like old times. Be kids again...or adults when we wanna be. Just you and me, some friends, quiet nights, what do you think?"
Star managed a weak smile before nodding slowly, wiping her nose and pulling Marco into a hug. "That sounds...amazing, Macho man. But uhm...what should we do first?" Marco gave her a flirtatious grin and pulled his scissors from her purse, cutting open a portal that fired red sparks around its edges. "Well, Stardust, how about we take a short vacation?"
"I'd love that," she answered, leaning forward to kiss him before pushing him hard through the portal. "But you're gonna need another after I'm done with you."
She disappeared into the portal after him, a new feeling of excitement and passion overtaking her. And as the living room was left with no more occupants, the portal shut itself, sealing them off from the cruel world that demanded so much.
To be continued in: The Concert
~Star and Marco try to take things easy at the Love Sentance concert, but after one small misunderstanding, things get...heated.
AUTHORS NOTE
Hey everyone, I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter of Forgotten Ventures. Sorry for the delay, but things have been a bit complicated in my life, between moving, finding a new job, and spending time with my family. (It's the holidays after all) But now, things are going along much more smoothly, so I hope to be producing more content at a far more stable rate in the future. If you enjoyed this chapter, leave a review with your thoughts or suggestions. If you didn't, tell me why! I'm far from great at this, so let me know what could be better, or what you'd like to know more about! As always, thank you so much for reading this story of mine, and if you'd like to check out another, read The Once and Future Queen by my alternate, shared account, Lord Ronaldwalis! I'll see you next time! Buh Byyyeee!
~Mr. Ronald Reagan