Moon and River

River was exhausted after giving Moon a tour of all her favorite places to relax. The two opted to take a break and sat down in Moon's private study while the servants brought refreshments.

"Any questions, Moon?" River looked over at his exhausted wife. She was looking out one of the nearest windows, the light causing her jewelry to sparkle and glow.

"When did we get married?"

"Two months after you turned eighteen. I courted you four years prior." The blonde king removed his crown and placed it on a velvet pillow near his chair.

"When did we have Star," she asked as she turned away to sit down in her large leather chair.

"Two years later, on Stump Day. You were so excited, you couldn't wait to hear her say 'mama'!" River smiled and laughed at the fond memory. He quieted down and waited for the next question.

"Does Star…hate me?" Moon's heart raced with anticipation. It was the most important question she felt she needed to ask. River was shocked by Moon's question, but he knew it was only a matter of time before she finally asked it.

"Well…the two of you have a difficult relationship. She doesn't hate you, just what you force her to do. She doesn't like the rigors of being royalty. Although, she's matured quite a bit since she met Marco. Recently, the two of you had a girl's day and bonded rather nicely. You always tell her that public displays of affection aren't a Butterfly virtue, so she never really got close to you when she was little." Moon placed her head in her hands, depressed by what she had just heard.

"You mean to tell me that I was cold to my child and pushed away her affection. All because I felt I had to uphold an image." River went to comfort Moon who accepted it eagerly. "That's not at all what I imagined I would do when I finally became a mother!"

"Moon, darling, don't be too hard on yourself. Star and I still love you very much. Besides, Star is a very affectionate child. She still hugs you and smiles like a Johansen." Moon looked at River and smiled. "You're a great mother!"

"Why did we send Star to Earth," she asked, hoping it wasn't because she had a serious fight with the young teen. River moved a chair so he could sit next to Moon and took her left hand.

"Well, on her fourteenth birthday, Star set the kingdom on fire. As a result, we felt that it would be safer for her to train there with Glossaryck."

"She set the kingdom on fire the first day she received the wand!" Moon laughed and imagined a slightly younger Star as people screamed in terror. I shouldn't find that funny but Star probably didn't mean to. "Even I wasn't that bad."

"She's a very creative child in a dangerously chaotic way. That's why you had her evaluated by that monster, Baby." River snorted in disgust as he recalled how Baby ate all his food.

"How did she do?" She was interested to learn about her daughter's skill level. River's face turned serious before answering.

"Baby said that she didn't know basic magic."

"What! Why does she still have the wand then," Moon asked, mortified by Star's results.

"It's fine, Baby said that she was far beyond your skill. Whatever that means. However, she did compare Star to Eclipsa." Moon couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her own daughter was powerful enough to rival the Queen of Darkness. Then why doesn't she know basic magic, Moon thought curiously.

"River, I don't if I ever told you about how I made a deal with Eclipsa. But in case I didn't, I'm going to tell you about it right now." Moon inhaled deeply, then exhaled, and looked River in the eyes. "I asked if she could help me kill Toffee, and in exchange, she would be free. Instead of killing him, I aimed at his finger and scared him and his army away. I didn't think he would come back for revenge. Now, you're all telling me he is dead, which means Eclipsa's free."

"Oh…," River looked in horror at Moon, "you only said that the dark magic spell you used had caused the purple markings. You left the Eclipsa part out. What are we going to do?" River squeezed her hand to try and show her that he was serious.

"I guess we wait and see what she does. Hopefully, the crystal will slowly break. If it does, we'll have some time to regain our memories and prepare for any attacks." The two rested their heads against each other and just relaxed for several minutes. As the time passed, the two fell asleep. River had rested his head on the desk while Moon's leaned on the side of her chair. A little over an hour later, the two began to stir from their short nap.

"Moon, darling, why don't we go see how Star and Marco are doing? Maybe they've figured something out." Moon nodded sleepily and followed River out of the study. When they reached the room, he knocked on Star's door, but no one answered. "Star, sweetie, are you in there?" River opened the door to reveal a napping figure.

"It looks like they're taking a break too." Moon pulled gently on River's shoulder and brought him back into the corridor. "Let's let her rest, I'm sure Marco is resting too."

"Yes, I'm sure you're right. What would you like to do instead?"

"Is there any room I normally stay away from," she asked curiously. She didn't get to explore the castle before she became queen, so she wondered what some of the other rooms were like.

"Well, you don't always go into the Tapestry Room," River said calmly.

"Why not?" Moon was puzzled to find that she avoided the Tapestry Room, it was her favorite as a child.

"I'm not actually sure about that one darling. I just know that you don't go there often. However, I have caught Star visiting it in the early morning before your lessons. I hadn't told you yet, sorry." River stopped walking and looked out one of the corridor windows.

"That's…alright. Can we go there right now?" Moon stepped closer to River and turned to see what he was looking at. The window they were looking out was facing where the explosion had occurred during the battle. "That was a lot bigger than I expected it to be," she said, surprised at the size.

The two left the corridor, walking until they reached their destination. Once there, they entered the dark, empty Tapestry Room. Although so many years had passed, the room seemed the same to Moon. The only difference she noticed was her tapestry which hadn't been added until a year after she was crowned.

"They really dramatized that standoff. I wasn't even on Chauncey when I fired that spell." Moon laughed and looked around at the other tapestries. She walked over to the stone and read the inscription. "That spell I used wasn't even mine." After a few minutes of studying her tapestry, they exited the room and back into daylight.

"Anything else you would like to do? See the library, or maybe the gardens?"

"Not really. Is it time for dinner? I'm feeling a bit peckish."

"This way, I'll have the chef cook your favorite dish and dessert." The two silently walked back to the dining hall. River gave a servant their order and the two waited silently at the table. Before long, Moon became unsettled by the lack of conversation.

"River, I'm sorry if anything's awkward between us. I really do wish I could remember. I feel like a fifteen-year-old trapped in a thirty-four-year-old body." Moon aimed to express how thoroughly upset she was with her situation but felt like it was lacking.

"Nonsense, Moon-pie, everything will eventually go back to normal. Right?" His uncertainty got the better of him as doubt filled his voice.

"I…I don't know. I would if I knew what spell was used."

"Ugh, Marco, when is this flying unicorn girl supposed to show up? I'm hungry!" Moon jumped at the sound of Star's loud voice coming from outside the dining hall. Heads turned as the angry teen kicked the door open. Moon narrowed her eyes in annoyance.

"I don't know Star, she's always here immediately after you message her." Marco entered and waved at the royal couple. "Mind if we join you for supper, we're hungry?"

"Not at all. Have the two of you figured anything out?" Moon looked at Star who had laid her face down on the table. "Star, no heads on the table please! It's very unsanitary." Star lazily lifted her head in response and stared blankly at the wall opposite her.

"Well, we learned the Plains of Time is no help at all. I tried to show Star her memories, but nothing showed up, just static. So instead, I showed Star my memories so she could get an idea of her usual routine."

"He lives a pretty boring life, well, did, until I came along." Star lightly punched Marco on the shoulder and laughed, happy for the moment.

"Hmm. River, why don't we try that?" Moon looked over at the blonde man who seemed to be eyeing a white monkey that sat outside one of the windows. "River, are you listening?"

"Huh, what? Yes…I mean no. What were you saying dear?" River smiled at Moon and tried to ignore the monkey outside.

"Marco showed Star his memories to see if she would remember anything. Maybe it would work with me."

"Yes, that sounds like a swell idea. We should attempt it tomorrow morning. First, supper, then sleep. In the morning, we can go do whatever Marco did." The servants entered and laid out the meal for Moon and River. Star and Marco told a nearby servant what they would like to eat and the four ate supper like they had breakfast, in silence.