Chapter Four: Like a Human

A tense silence lingered in the living room of the Diaz Household. An hour had passed since the attack in the street and even then, Star's gaze continued to linger on the ground as she sat alone in an armchair that was much bigger than herself.

Marco sat at another chair just beside her, but air wasn't the only thing between them. There was a wall, not of any physical material, but it was just as strong. The exact scenario that Marco had so desperately hoped to avoid had come to pass and Star was well aware of what that meant.

There was no taking back what they saw. This mistake was final, even if unavoidable. It wasn't fair and it definitely wasn't good.

Still, her mind was as silent as her mouth. It was like she was still frozen in that moment, unable to allow herself to move past it and unable to formulate any solution.

"Star?" she finally heard, her mind snapping back to the present in an instant as she met the anxious, waiting eyes of the Diaz parents.

She cleared her throat and squirmed in place, maintaining what little eye contact she could manage.

"We… don't understand what we saw in the street," Angie began. "We don't understand any of it. We don't know if what we saw was real. We don't even know if it's possible that any of it was real. We just-"

She paused, sighing as Rafael stood behind her with his arms crossed and an anxious expression.

"We need you to explain… and this time we need the truth."

Her words penetrated her like a knife through butter, a knot forming in her throat in an instant.

She took several moments, contemplating exactly what to say. She wanted to lie. She knew that's what her mother would want her to do. She knew it would be best if they didn't know who she was and finally, she understood why her parents kept it a secret, but at the same time, as she met Angelica's eyes, she couldn't bring herself to tell anything but the truth.

"I-" Star hesitantly began, her voice weak. "I'm not from Moo Nick… or whatever Marco said."

She took a deep breath as she struggled to find words.

"My home is in a different dimension," she reluctantly admitted. "I'm the princess of the Butterfly Kingdom… which is on Mewni… and-"

"Another dimension?" Rafael questioned with his hand on his forehead.

"I- Yes," Star answered, nodding. "It's not really anything like this place. There're monsters, there's magic… there aren't cars or anything like that."

"Excuse me," Rafael interrupted once more. "Did you just say Monsters? Magic?"

Star nodded with a quiet sigh, and just like he had before, Rafael fainted with a loud thud, Angie sighing.

"Don't worry about him," Angie said. "I just- I need to hear more."

She pointed to the scissors that poked out of Star's bag.

"So, those scissors-" she began. Star reached into her bag and grabbed the scissors, but as she pulled them out, they weren't alone.

Glossaryck launched out of the bag with a blaze of magical light.

"FREEDOM!" he shouted, stretching his arms as the room fell silent.

Glossaryck let out a sigh of contentment, picking at his belly button as he scanned the room, smiling.

"So," he began, glancing in Star's direction with incredible sarcasm. "They know your little secret."

Star rolled her eyes knowing that her magical teacher wouldn't be letting this go any time soon.

He chuckled to himself, kicking his feet as he floated in the air in the middle of the room.

"How are you gonna get yourself out of this one, princess?" he questioned playfully.

Star was less than amused.

"To answer your question," Star began, completely ignoring Glossaryck's idiotic mocking. "My scissors cut open portals to different dimensions."

Angie stared at the scissors with confusion, and before she could ask, Star explained.

"They're not mine and there are a lot more than one pair," she clarified. "The monsters you saw… they had a pair."

Angie's eyes widened as she quickly realized what Star was alluding to.

"The school…"

Star nodded. "That was them," she admitted. "I- I'm sorry I had to lie to you. I'm supposed to keep all of this a secret…"

"No, I get it," Angie affirmed. "I- I just… I'm almost forty—my whole life- I never would have thought that…"
"I- I understand," Star remarked with a deep sigh. "Should I go pack my bags then? I can be out of here in a couple of hours if you-"
"What?" Angie interrupted, Rafael's eyes blinking open. He pushed off of the ground slowly, standing behind his wife as he held his head in his hands.

"Why would you be leaving?" she asked. "You just got here…"
Star turned to Rafael, confused.

"I just thought-" she paused. "I just thought that- I don't want to make things worse…"

Rafael tilted his head. "Make things worse?"

"Well, it's my fault that the school got shut down and I've already put Marco through so much and-"
"Star, none of this has been your fault," Marco interrupted with his arms crossed. "It's a lot to handle, but you've done the best you could every time trouble has come around."

"That's debatable," Glossaryck jeered quietly.

Star scoffed.

"But come on," she argued. "Ludo wouldn't have even come here if it wasn't for me."

"Ludo…" Angie said, her gaze falling to the ground as she contemplated. "That's that little monster's name was?"

Star nodded, explaining, "He's after my wand."

The room was silent for a moment, and then Angie met Star's eyes with confusion.

"He seems pretty…" she paused, whispering. "Weak…"

Star nodded.

"Yeah," she admitted. "He's pretty easy to stop, but that's not the problem."

"It's that he keeps coming back," Marco interjected.

"Then just stop using your wand," Angie answered in a near-instant, Star's eyes shooting open in an instant.

Angie chuckled, clarifying, "I just mean that maybe if you don't use your wand, he'll think you don't have it anymore. Then he might leave you alone."

"Interesting theory," Glossaryck remarked, kicking his feet once more.

"But-" Star tried to object.

"But nothing," Angie interrupted. "You said it yourself, Ludo is an easy fight. You shouldn't need your magic to stop him."

Star sighed, her shoulders falling with her face.

"You know what," Angie remarked after a couple seconds of silence. "You might only need to fight him once…"

Star tilted her head with confusion.

"Wait," Marco said, his eyes as wide as his smile. "I think I get it…"

Star turned to Marco, no less confused than before.

"She's saying that if you just tell him you don't have it and really make him believe it, he might actually believe you!"

"Really?" Star questioned. "You think that'll work?"

"Star, Ludo's an idiot," Marco remarked. "He'd believe you if you told him he was dead."

"Ludo makes you look like a genius, Star," Glossaryck mocked.

Star continued to ignore him.

"Okay," she said, visibly nervous. "No magic next time… I'll just fight him like a human."

"A human on steroids," Glossarcyk continued to mock.

Star rolled her eyes with a smirk, finally acknowledging him.

"You are so annoying…"

"You- Your wand is mine, Butterflop," Ludo muttered to himself between exaggerated snores, his body contorted as he lay on his massive, hard mattress.

He tossed and turned in his sleep, reaching out as if he could grab the wand from his dreams and bring it with him to reality. He grabbed it, smiling wide when suddenly, with a loud rooster's crow piercing the air, his eyes shot open.

"Wha-" he questioned, disoriented.

"Oh," he said with a sigh. "Another dream…"

He crawled out of his bed, his joints popping loudly as he stretched his short arms over his head.

"It'll be mine," he assured himself. "Today is the day…"
He held his hand in front of his short beak, breathing out and taking a whiff of his morning breath.

To anyone else, the stench would have been enough to incapacitate, but to him, it was nothing out of the ordinary.

"Not bad," he remarked, lifting his arm and sniffing his greasy, hairy armpits, which carried a similar stench.

Sweat stained both sides, but he merely shrugged his shoulders, remarking, "Maybe tomorrow…"

Next, he turned to his bedroom door, sliding on his usual, musty flip-flops before pulling open his door, his smile growing as he scanned the room, spotting all of the usual monsters.

"WAKE UP!" he commanded, smiling as his monsters groaned. "We have an attack to plan!"

As he ambled through the room, his monsters groggily awakened.

"This time, I'm thinking…" he paused, pacing in circles as he held his chin in his tiny hand. "We already tried a sneak attack, so this time… maybe we should just attack her exactly when she expects it, that way it'll be a perfect surprise!"

"The wand will be MINE! FINALLY!"

A couple of monsters pumped their fists with pride, but the rest just rolled their eyes. Luckily, Ludo only noticed what he wanted to.

"It's perfect!" he muttered to himself. "There's no need to wait either! I'll just go get my scissors now!"

He skipped into his office with a smile as his monsters moaned behind him. He swung open his war room door and stepped inside with glee, but as he opened his eyes, his heart dropped.

Sitting at a chair at his desk was a monster he had never met before. He was tall and slender, dressed in a rich, deep black suit with a thin red tie. The sight of a monster like him would have already brought a chill to his spine, but unlike those that Ludo had met before, this monster didn't move an inch.

He was perfectly still, as if dead, and even as Ludo stood behind him, fearfully struggling for air, the monster didn't budge.

"Umm…" Ludo began, clearing his throat as he began perspiring. "Are you here for my taxes? I swear I was GOING to pay!"

The monster let out a single chuckle, gesturing for Ludo to sit behind his desk.

Ludo obliged, although reluctantly, struggling to climb his chair. He met the monster's eyes, but couldn't maintain his gaze. He tried to open his mouth again in some vain attempt to clear the air, but just as he opened his mouth, the monster's deep, confident voice cut through the air.

"You seek out the Butterfly Family's Royal Wand," he stated flatly. "You won't get it without me."

Ludo's mouth hung open with shock, but the monster didn't flinch.

"Wh- What are you talking about?" Ludo questioned with great offense. "That wand- It- It's mine!"

"No," the monster stated, just as flatly as before. "Your attacks on the princess have been a disgrace."

"Right?!" Ludo shouted in agreement. "My monsters don't even seem like they're trying, they-"

"They are mismanaged," the monster explained. "You need a general—someone who can lead you and your soldiers to victory, someone who can get you the wand."

Ludo's eyes widened with every word that left the monster's mouth.

"You need success. You need intelligence in your ranks. You need me."

"YOU'RE HIRED!" Ludo screamed, his fists in the air.

The monster sat back in his chair, smirking.

"Wait," Ludo said, his smile replaced by confusion. "What's your name again?"

The monster sighed with contentment, scooting forward and holding out his hand and waiting several moments, only opening his mouth when Ludo finally took his hand and shook it with his weak grip.

The monster clasped Ludo's minuscule hand with crushing strength, his smile widening as his name left his mouth.

"Toffee," he said as if satisfied by the mention of his own moniker.

Ludo smiled, gripping Toffee's hand as hard as he could.

"Okay, Toffee," Ludo said. "Let's go get the wand."

He climbed down from his chair and skipped back to the door with enthusiasm, his hopes renewed and his spirit full when, to his chagrin, Toffee disagreed.

"No," he said finally. "I have something else in mind."

"B- but, come on, Toffee!" Ludo argued. "The third time's the charm! The wand will be mine, I can feel it!"

"You're right," Toffee remarked. "It will be…"
"Our next attack will be our last."

Author's Notes:

So, there it is… another chapter down. I know there wasn't much action in this one, but as I'm sure you can tell, something big is coming. I won't explain too much, but I promise that it'll be worth the wait.

Either way, I'd like to thank you guys for your support thus far. Your comments have been great and they've helped me greatly in finding the motivation to continue writing. This story means a lot to me and I'm really excited to keep writing it, so if you guys wouldn't mind, I'd appreciate it if you continued commenting, especially given the state of ffn's website.

I hope you enjoyed and I'll see you again soon. Follow me on Instagram for story updates starcovstheworld and stay tuned!

~ lucash21