*Nervous chuckle* Sorry for taking forever. Kind of hit a bit of a writer's block for how the chapter would end and I had many internal debates on ow it should go...But it's here now and I hope that you, fellow readers, enjoy the chapter anyways!

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Star Vs The Forces of Evil.

Chapter 2

Marco's face felt like it could split in two, he was smiling so much. He stared at the swirling portal for a moment before snapping back into reality. Marco glanced at the clock: 10:30. He couldn't leave now, his parents are guaranteed to freak out if they open the door and find him gone at this time of night. Especially with how depressed he seemed to be.

Sighing, Marco closed the portal and changed into his pajamas. He lifted the covers and slipped under them, placing the scissors back under the mattress beforehand. He reached over to turn off his bedside lamp and closed his eyes.

He'll go first thing in the morning.

Marco sleepily opened his eyes as the sun rose. He looked at the clock.

6:15

Early enough, Marco thought. He sat up in his bed and stretched out his arms, yawning while doing so. Wasting little to no time, Marco hastily kicked his covers off of him and stood up. He rushed to the bathroom to shower, bringing his clothes with him.

10 minutes later, Marco emerged from the bathroom dressed in his red hoodie. He entered his room again and grabbed a sticky note and a pen. Quickly scribbling down a note informing where he will be so his parents won't worry, he headed downstairs towards the kitchen.

He slapped the note on the counter and grabbed an apple, stuffing it in his hoodie for later. Marco headed upstairs and entered his room for the final time. Lifting up the mattress, he grabbed his dimensional scissors.

Marco took a deep breath. I can do this.

He opened a portal and stepped through it, closing right after.

Marco looked around at the somewhat familiar area. There were many worn down houses, a few carts selling Star Butterfly merchandise, and a couple of food carts lining the streets.

As he walked through the streets leading to the Butterfly castle, he could practically feel the locals' stares burning into the back of his head, as well as hear all of the not-so-quiet whispers about him.

Marco pulled up his hood and walked faster, shoving his hands in his pockets. This did not help at all as a little kid ran up to him, blocking his path. Marco looked down at the kid, he had to be around 7 or 8 at most.

"Excuse me, sir. Are you gonna be the future king of Mewni?" Asked the kid.

This threw Marco in for a loop. He instantly flushed and stuttered while the little kid looked up at him with big innocent eyes. After who-knows-how-long, Marco managed to compose himself.

"Wha-No! I-uh-we're not-um-you know, together."

The kid pouted. "But…"

Before he could say anymore, a middle-aged woman, presumably his mother, ran up to him and Marco. She grabbed her son and pulled him back.

"Now, Jimmy, stop bothering this young man," she scolded. The woman then looked up at Marco with an apologetic look. "Sorry about that, My son can be very curious at times."

Ignoring the fact that his face was probably as red as a tomato, Marco smiled and nodded. "It's okay."

He waited for the mother to drag her kid away at a reasonable distance before walking towards his destination. Marco thought back to what had happened. No doubt that the kingdom might think that, being exposed as Star's crush and all. But did people really think that way? That he and Star are a…

Marco blushed from just thinking about it. People really thought they were a couple? But looking back at their past interactions with each other, it can be a rational assumption. And it did make some things understandable. Like that time Star's dad, King River if he remembered correctly, had thought that he was her boyfriend. Or those times they would catch people staring and commenting that they were cute.

Marco walked up the steps and was greeted almost instantly by the castle's guards. The two guarding the door raised their swords threateningly.

"And who are you?" The first one demanded.

Marco took off his hood and stepped back, holding up his arms. "Woah, I come at peace. I'm Marco Diaz, friend of Princess Star Butterfly."

The two guards shared a suspicious look and lowered their weapons.

The second one spoke. "Alright, Diaz. Come with me." He then proceeded to enter the castle, with Marco following closely behind.

Marco looked around the castle. There was a long hall, the one they're walking through, leading to a large set of doors. The throne room, Marco mused. Lining the walls of the hall, were many different tapestries and doors, presumably leading to either more halls or rooms.

Once they reached the end of the hall, the castle guard knocked on the large set of doors. A muffled sound came in response and the guard opened the door and walked inside, motioning Marco to do the same.

The guard cleared his throat. "*Ahem* You have a visitor claiming to be a friend of the princess, Your Highness."

Moon turned after being addressed and relaxed a little. Considering her disheveled state, that wasn't saying much.

"Oh thank you, Frank. I know him so you can return back to your duty."

The guard, now known as Frank, nodded and gave a salute before leaving the room. Moon turned to Marco and ushered for him to come closer. She sighed. "Let me guess, you're here for Star?"

Marco gave a quick nod, "Yes, Your Majesty."

Moon cracked a small smile, her eyes squinting in amusement. "Just 'Moon' is fine, Marco." She frowned again, "As for Star, she hasn't been doing so good lately. That is to be expected, of course, being taken away from all her friends, but I'm still worried for her."

Marco shifted his gaze to the floor and rubbed his arm sheepishly. "Yeah… We didn't exactly part on best terms. She kinda confessed her feelings for me, and I stood there frozen, just staring after her as she ran up the stairs…"

Moon nodded. "Ah, that does explain some things. However, I'm not surprised. I already got the message that she liked you more than a friend after Song Day."

Still looking at the floor, Marco blushed slightly. "Yeah…"

The two stayed like that for a couple more seconds before Moon spoke up. "Well I'm guessing you want to see her rather than just talking about her. So, come along, follow me."

Moon stood up from her throne and walked past Marco and through the large set of doors. Marco sprinted up partially behind her to follow. She entered a side door to the right and took another right. She then climbed up two flights of stairs, Marco right behind her, and led him to an overly pink and sparkly door. She knocked on the door saying, "Star? You have a visitor!"

A muffled response followed and Moon nodded to Marco in approval. But just before Marco could open the door, Moon placed a hand on his shoulder. Marco turned to her.

Her face was laced with concern as she whispered to him. "Talk to her. For me."

Marco nodded and walked in silently. He saw Star, who was now in her royal dress and her hair up in buns, leaning on the balcony of her tower. Marco suddenly got the feeling of déja vu but pushed it down for now.

Marco took a step forward and cleared his throat to get her attention.

"Hey, Star."