Hello, and Happy Holidays! Yes, I'm aware its a little late for a holiday greeting, but please work with me here.

This AU is one that was inspired by a comic I came across when I first dove into the fandom almost a year ago. Then, a couple weeks ago, this idea popped into my head and wouldn't leave, so I did some world-building around it and wrote this!

Again, Happy Holidays, and enjoy!

The house was the same as she remembered. White-bricked walls, the red and yellow arch over the doorway, the red-brown roof- none of it had changed.

She stood on the small snow-covered porch, smiling. Even in the middle of winter, it still had the warm, cheerful air that made her feel welcome from the very beginning.

Star Butterfly hadn't been here in years, yet she knew she could always call this place her home.

But the box in her hands reminded her of why she was here: to find her husband.

She rang the doorbell, giggling as she remembered pressing that little button over and over and over, listening to the cute little chime. It didn't take long for her hosts to politely ask her not to ring the bell quite so much in the future.

The door opened partway, and a pair of inscrutable brown eyes peered at her. The girl in the doorway was dressed in her trademark outfit, with only a small red scarf to mark the season.

"Hey Star," the dark-haired girl casually greeted the blonde, as though it had only been hours since they last met. "Glad you could make it."

"Hey, Janna Banana," Star smiled warmly, glad to see her friend again. She normally greeted close friends with a hug, but Janna was never the touchy-feely type. Instead, they bumped fists (an Earth custom that took Star over a year to master), complimented each others' earrings, and headed inside.

The Diaz house was packed with people, many of them faces Star knew well. Fergusson and Alfonso stood in one corner, trying to pick up girls under the coaching of Kelly the Woolett. Oskar was surrounded by a small crowd, his keytar skills vastly improved from the (supposedly) head-splitting racket he made in early high school. Jackie was on the couch with her partner Chloe, laughing and chatting in rapid-fire French. Surprisingly, Brittany had also decided to show up, but the former Queen Bee wasn't enjoying herself as much as the others.

A big cheer went up as the partiers noticed their favorite magical princess had arrived- heralded, as usual, by Justin's signature "STAR BUTTERFLY RULES!"- and the blonde went to quickly reconnect with her various friends. Greetings, hugs, and one-liners were exchanged, as were compliments on their festive attire; excluding Janna, everyone was appropriately dressed for the holidays.

However, there was still someone missing.

"Thanks, Jackie. Do you know where I could find Marco?" Star asked after accepting a compliment about her gloves.

Jackie thought for a moment, her mood dropping considerably. "I know he was down here earlier, but I haven't seen him in a while. I'm sorry, Star."

Her words carried more weight than one would expect for the context, but Star understood. Jackie had never forgiven herself for crushing Marco's heart, especially right after his accident. None of them held it against the girl, least of all Marco himself, but that didn't stop her from apologizing every chance she got.

"It's okay, Jackie," Star said, making sure her friend knew she was, in fact, forgiven. "It's not your fault you haven't seen him."

Chloe said something in French, and Jackie nodded in agreement. "Yeah, he could be in his room. It was pretty sunny today."

"Nah, that wouldn't matter for Marco," Janna remarked from behind Chloe, prompting a startled exclamation from the foreigner. "Sunlight can't hurt him or anything, he's just stronger at night. He might still be in his room though."

"Or right behind you?"

The beanie-capped girl scoffed. "I've been sneaking around Echo Creek for years, I think I'd know if there was someone behind-" She broke off as her brain caught up with her ears, and an impressed grin spread on her face. "Well played, Diaz. Well played."

"MARCO!" Star's heart had leapt in her chest the moment she heard his voice, but she waited for his reveal before pouncing on her husband.

"Woah! Hey Star!" Laughing good-naturedly, Marco Diaz-Butterfly returned her tight embrace. He had grown a lot since Star had met him at fourteen: he was taller, more muscular (with AAAAAABBBBBSSSSSS), and could grow a patch of scraggly hair on his chin every few weeks.

Then, of course, there were the changes from his accident. His skin was lighter, and cool to the touch. His eyes often glowed crimson when agitated. His fingernails could rip through feet of tempered steel with ease. Oh, and the fangs. Can't forget those.

But even after all these years and changes, some things remained the same. He still wore that red hoodie, although in a couple sizes larger. His eyes, when not shining with supernatural light, were still that warm chocolate brown. The mole on his right cheek was still adorable.

And most importantly, he was still the same compassionate, caring person she'd grown to love.

"Mmmmmm," Star sighed in contentment. "I needed that."

Marco gently rubbed his wife's back. "Hard week?"

"You have no idea," Star murmured into his shoulder, then drew back. "But enough about work and Queen stuff. This is a Christmas party! And I... got you... a present... that I can't seem to find."

Sure enough, she had misplaced her gift. This could be a problem.

"Is this it?" Jackie asked, offering a small red box tied with blue ribbon. "You kinda threw it at me when Marco showed up."

"Yes!" Star snatched the box, inspected it for damage, then let out a sigh of relief. It was carefully-wrapped for a reason, after all. "Thanks, Jackie!"

"Wait, Star," Marco held up his hands. "Not here. Let's go out back first."

The four girls shared a knowing grin. It was obvious Marco had something planned.

"Alright, Wild Man," Star turned back to her husband, threading her arm through his. "Lead the way."

She had to hand it to him: when Marco wanted to do something, he did it well.

The sun was starting to sink below the horizon, painting the snowy backyard a soft gold. A modest evergreen tree was set up in the middle of the yard, decorated with small lights, ornaments, and slight powdering. More lights were hung along the fence, adding splashes of red and green to the shimmering gold. And next to the tree was a table and two chairs, already prepared for a small outdoor gift exchange.

It was a simple arrangement, but that didn't make it any less amazing.

"Wowwww," Star breathed, staring at the colors and decorations.

"I'm glad you like it," Marco gave her a light smirk, "Because then you'll love what I got for you."

"Is that so?" she asked, playfully skeptical.

"It is indeed," he affirmed, and the couple made their way to the table where Marco's present was waiting.

As much as Star wanted to enjoy the moment before the bomb dropped, patience wasn't exactly her strong suit. She shredded the pink and blue wrapping paper, mostly ignoring her husband's amused chuckles, and tore through the cardboard box to find a smaller, velvet one.

Her eyes stretched in astonishment. "Oh, Marco, you didn't have to-"

"I wanted to," Marco interrupted her with a smile. "I saw you staring at the display in Quest Buy, so I had them make one."

Star carefully opened the soft lid, and pulled out a small jeweled pendant. Three gems were set into the silver face: two red crescents surrounding a pink heart. On the back was an inscription: "To my Shining Star, the brightest light in any sky."

"It's beautiful..." She smiled, her eyes watering. "Thank you, Marco. I love it."

"I'm glad," Marco repeated, matching her smile. "It's a shame this one isn't real, though."

"How did you know?" It wasn't a surprise that he figured it out. Marco always had a sharp mind, and it had only gotten sharper over the years.

"It was pretty convincing until I saw Mackie Hand over by the snack bar." He chuckled. "Only in my dreams would a famous actor show up to my Christmas party."

"Yeah, that would give it away," Star admitted, a little embarrassed that she didn't notice him earlier.

"Wait," Marco glanced sharply at his wife. "Are we in my head right now?"

Star blinked. "Uhhhhhh... yes?"

"Starrrr," He groaned. "That's creepy! Like, Janna-level creepy!"

"I thought you wanted to see me..." Star whispered, not expecting him to react like this.

Marco immediately stood, wrapping the blonde in a tight, reassuring hug. "I did want to see you, Star. I'm really glad you're here. But just the same, I'd rather not be stuck inside my head."

She sighed. "Yeah, I get it."

"So," her husband pulled away, and Star could see his mind gears turning. "If we're in my head, where's the rest of me?"

"Still trapped in one of Rhombulus' crystals," Star replied, unable to keep the wistful notes out of her voice.

"Well, that sucks," Marco remarked dryly, before his expression softened. "What about you?"

"Weeeell," Star glanced awkwardly to the side. "That's kind of a long story, but I'm... basically free now."

Marco nodded. "That explains you using the Mindwalker spell."

"Yeah, sorry about that."

"It's fine. I've gotten used to it now." There was a hesitant pause before he spoke again. "Then... how's Luminosa?"

"Oh, she is just the cutest!" Star gushed, immediately recalling every cute detail about their daughter. "She's got my eyes and your little mole. Although she does try to ambush people from the ceiling."

Marco's adoration quickly turned to alarm. "Has she-"

"Thankfully, that's a no. Her teeth came in a couple months back, but she hasn't bitten anyone yet. At this rate, I don't think she ever will."

"That's a relief." Marco let out a melancholy sigh. "I wish I could see her."

"Actually~," Star couldn't stop her grin from spreading ear to ear, "you can!~"

"Wait, what?"

Squealing with excitement, Star picked up the wrapped box and fiddled with the ribbon. "My mom made a spell that can break your crystal, and I've done everything but the very last step." A sharp tug undid the bow, and the box disappeared in a puff of glitter, revealing a large rooster with another ribbon tied around its beak. "All I have to do is make this bad boy crow, and then you're free!"

Her husband raised an eyebrow. "That's... oddly specific."

"Hehe yeah, some of Mom's spells were kinda weird, but they worked pretty well for her." Star held the end of the ribbon, prepared to bust Marco out. "So, are ya ready to see your baby girl?!"

To her utter surprise, his face slowly fell. "Marco?"

He sighed. "I don't think that's a good idea, Star. I mean, I do want to get out, but don't the Mewmans still hate me?"

Once again, Star wasn't expecting this line of conversation. "Yeeeaaahhhh, you're pretty controversial. Especially with the Spiderbites..."

"I'm not surprised, considering what I did to Shastacan." Marco grimaced at the memory. "That dude was disgusting."

Star shuddered. "Why'd you even do that, anyways? I always told you he was a slob."

"I lost my temper," her husband admitted, lowering his head in shame. "But that's the thing: if I get out, everyone will just be waiting for me to mess up again. And maybe I'm still upset over what happened to Luminosa. Maybe I'll just lose it again, and prove them right."

As she listened to his words, Star's heart threatened to break. Was she really going to lose him?

"We can make it work!" she blurted out, scrambling for something, anything, to convince him. "We can get you a whole pen of pig-goats, just for you! And we can set up a feeding schedule, and-and train the staff to recognize your warning signs and-"

"Star."

"Please," she begged him, tears threatening to spill over. "I just want you with us..."

"Star," Marco repeated, kindly but firmly. "Can you tell me, without a doubt, that the Kingdom is ready for me?"

That made her pause. It wasn't all that long ago that Mewni hated Star, too. Were they ready for a monster King? For a vampire King?

"I-I don't know..."

Marco held his wife gently, soft brown eyes peering deep into her own. "You will. When the Kingdom is ready for me, you'll know. And then, maybe I'll be ready too."

"I hate it when you're right, y'know?" She muttered into his large red hoodie, staining it with her tears, before tilting her head upwards to meet his lips...

Star floated back to the ground, tears flowing freely down her heart-stamped cheeks. The rooster fluttered from her arms, ribbon still firmly tied around its beak. She sighed mournfully, gazing at Marco's frozen snarl.

This evening did not go the way she had planned.

And it was about to stray from those plans even further.

"So," an accented voice called from behind Star, startling her. "The Book is back, is it?"

The blonde turned to meet the burning lavender eyes of Eclipsa Butterfly, former Crown Princess of Mewni, and Star's biggest supporter and advocate. An advocate she had just betrayed.

"I see you've put Glossaryck's silkworms to work repairing it," Eclipsa observed, her voice cold. "They're doing a lovely job too, by the way. Why, I can clearly read the instructions for Solaria's Crystal Pulverizing Spell." She gestured pointedly to the page in question.

"Eclipsa, I can-"

"So when do I get to meet the famous 'Prince of Darkness'?" the teal-haired teen interrupted.

"Not today," Star sighed. "He's not ready to come out yet. The Kingdom isn't ready."

"Of course they're not!" Eclipsa snapped. "They weren't even ready for me and Globgor! What made you think they'd be ready for him?!"

Truthfully, Star had forgotten about that little incident with Eclipsa and the young Size-Shifter. Although, 'little' really isn't the best word to describe what happened.

"Not to mention you stole that piece of the Book from my closet!" Eclipsa paused, realization crossing her face. "How did you know it was there?"

Now Star really felt guilty. "I, uhhhh... might have... sorta... lookedaroundinyourhead?"

"You... did what?" Eclipsa stared at her with a mixture of awe and horror. "Star, that is... beyond creepy."

"Yeah, I've been getting that a lot," Star replied, looking back on her husband's near-identical response. "I'm sorry, Eclipsa. It's just... I really miss him."

The former Princess gave her a somber smile. "I understand. You do crazy things when you miss the people you love."

"You sure do," Star agreed, glancing at the Book of Spells, still being slimed back together by the silkworms.

"Which is why I'm going to give you a proper coronation."

Star's head whipped back towards Eclipsa, and she stared at the girl in shock. "Wait, what?"

"That's right." Eclipsa's eyes twinkled in a way that greatly reminded Star of her old friend Janna. "I'll give you a coronation, and publicly declare you Queen of Mewni. Then the Kingdom will have to accept you, and you will have to lead them. Maybe then you'll think twice before pulling something like this again."

As much as Star hated to admit, the girl had a point. An official ceremony would make her rule more credible than it was currently. The people would be more accepting, and Star would have to be more responsible. Which would mean putting an end to her late-night 'witchy stuff'- including her efforts to free Marco.

"Yeah," Star sighed reluctantly. "I guess you're right."

"Well then," Eclipsa smiled again. "Despite the circumstances, I'm glad we had this talk. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to start making plans."

As the young Butterfly walked out of the cavern, the elder Butterfly stayed behind, her face falling. Star had never wanted to be Queen, to wear the crown. She just wanted the love of her life to be back in her life. But instead...

She glanced again at the frozen form of her husband, wishing that he wasn't still stuck in that crystal. With a sigh, she resigned herself to her fate.

"Merry Christmas, Star. You get a crown this year."

Except the last part, this was my entry for the December 2021 Writing Contest.

While I've found many people see the similarities between Star and Eclipsa (myself included), I haven't seen a lot of stories with Star in Eclipsa's shoes. So, this is my Christmas-themed adaptation of "The Monster and the Queen" with Star and Eclipsa swapping roles. I am quite proud of this idea, to be completely honest, and I have several more prompts to cover in this AU.

For those who have made requests, I am working on those when I have the time and inspiration, but I make no guarantees as to when they will be finished and posted. For those who haven't, feel free to do so!

This is NightAroma, signing off for the holidays!