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rpchive · 7 years ago

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Eighty Fourth Encounter-- To Be In Your Favor

it’s gay all the way my guy

Collin, Fawkes, and Tellus are standing in the console room, waiting for the others to arrive. Tellus is waiting by the door, fidgeting with her hair uncomfortably. Tori arrives with a reluctant Demo and Silky, who is ready as usual. Collin: There you guys are. Ready to wrap up this scavenger hunt? Demo: Oh, just us? ...Well, I guess we've all been ready since day one, honestly. Let's get this over with. Daedalus' voice echos out from the hallway. "Hey, hold on a damn second!"

He quickly strides out into the console room after the others. It seems that during his downtime he figured out how to use the closet in the IT, as he's ditched the jumpsuit that he "formed" with in favor of some actual clothes. He now has a plain t-shirt underneath a leather jacket, a pair of jeans, running shoes, and a pair of sunglasses that he's actively wearing despite being inside. "What, you thought you were ditching me here?" Silky tries not to laugh while Demo grins broadly.

Demo: Oh no, I knew you wouldn't miss this for anything. Daedalus: ... What're you giving me that look for? Silky: Human fashion is just...so...

Silky cannot contain her giggles. "...Why am I laughing; XL's family is even worse...!" Daedalus: I mean, I could've kept the jumpsuit if you'd rather I keep looking like one of GLaDOS' toys, but I figured I'd actually live a little.

Collin inhales sharply for a second before speaking. "Right, well, can we leave now?"

Daedalus: Not so fast. Gimme that gauntlet of yours.

Collin: What? Why?

Daedalus: You kidding? I'm not going out without something to protect myself with. Why do you need that stupid thing when you have magic superpowers? Give it. It's not like it won't fit or anything.

I want him to have some sort of abilities soooo badly; but Dee still doesn’t remember what he used to be capable of when he was alive :(

Collin rolls his eyes before unstrapping the gauntlet from his hand and tossing it over to Daedalus, who just as easily hooks it onto himself. He flexes the fingers a few times before making a fist.

Daedalus: Alright, much better.

Tellus: There's... one last thing I should tell you all before we go outside. Demo: Yeah? Tellus: We can feel the presence of the last two shards outside, but something is... wrong. alienrabitt: Wrong with the shards, or...? Tellus: We're... not entirely sure. We haven't felt something like this since the days of Israphel. N-Not that we think he's back or anything! Just that something about this place is... unnatural. Demo: Yeah, well, I'd like to see somebody actually manage to push through us for once. No offense; I'm sure it's really dangerous or whatever, but please; we can handle it. Tellus: Alright. Just... be prepared for anything.

On that note, she pulls open the door of the IT and leads the others outside. As they step out under a dreary gray sky, they find themselves standing on the withered lawn of a grand mansion-turned-workshop. The structure has clearly seen better days as the windows are broken, the paint has faded, and as a whole seems a husk of its former self. Strange additions to the building that were clearly made to support additional features or rooms inside jut out of the walls and ceiling at random, and a network of rusted brass pipes crisscrosses over the mansion.

All over the yard and especially on the building, the same purple ooze of flux that the group has seen before has been scattered everywhere. In front of the steps to the main building, a silver crystal is imbedded in the ground in the center of the flux. However, the flux seems to have retreated from the crystal rather than spread over it, forming a perfect circle around the shard. Demo: Don't go arcane sponging this crap up again; if you get stuck as something weird I'm gonna leave you like that this time.

alienrabitt: Ugh; I didn't do it on purpose...but I won't. I really have gotten better...

Demo: Riiiight, and this place is full of butterflies and rainbows. Daedalus: The hell is this wreck anyways?

Tellus: This is... Precantaro's workshop.

Daedalus: Well, I think he lost the deposit on the place.

Tellus glares daggers at him, and he returns with a faint shrug. "Sorry, just saying..."

Collin: Anyway, it looks like one of the crystals landed right outside for some reason. Let me just clean up this flux and we can scratch one off our list already.

He steps over to the puddle around the crystal and holds his hand out to it. The flux flows upward to meet his hand, but as soon as it makes contact Collin cries out in pain and snaps his hand away as he stumbles backward. The flux drops back down to the ground with a wet slapping noise and grows still. alienrabitt: Wh-what happened?! Are you okay?! Collin: Y-Yeah, I'm fine. Something is wrong with this flux. Well, more wrong than usual. Usually I can just filter out the entropy and break this stuff back down into magic, but there's something else mixed in with it that burns like hell if I touch it. Demo: Ah yes, acid reflux.

put me back in the basement

Collin: No, seriously, it- ugh, nevermind. I can still move this stuff at least, so...

He moves his hands to either side and the flux parts away from the crystal in conjunction. He grasps the crystal firmly and heaves it out of the dirt. There is a momentary flash of light, but rather than entering the foggy void, the light simply vanishes and the crystal hurtles into Tellus and phases through her body, immediately merging with the others. Demo: Did that seriously work? Why'd he decide to clam up like that? Tellus: I think he- ow!

She puts one hand to her forehead and winces. "E-Easy! Alright alright, here, just go already!"

She vanishes in a flash and is replaced by a man in a long black cloak. His skin is the color of smoke, and even seems to swirl like it occasionally. A heavily worn witch hat of a matching color sits on his head, and a pair of dress shoes tap impatiently on the ground. He glances over at the others with a pair of bright yellow eyes with cat-like pupils before speaking in a commanding tone with a slight hint of urgency underneath it.

?: Good, you've finally arrived. It took you long enough to make your way out here. Demo: ...Uhh...you look new. ?: ... Right, I suppose I haven't spoken with the rest of you before. I am Fereldir, god of Witchery. Forgive me if I seem... impatient. I'm simply concerned with what might be happening inside that workshop. Silky: Oh, I understand; this whole thing just screams 'bad.' We should probably get moving. Fereldir: I agree. Follow me, please.

He leads the others to the front door of the workshop. The flux parts away from his path in a similar way to Collin's trick, although he doesn't seem to need gestures to mimic the effect. They step inside what was once probably a pleasant foyer area, but is now a collection of rotted furniture, faded paintings, and a healthy layer of dust and flux.

Daedalus: Wow, this place really went to hell, huh?

Fereldir: A strong understatement. Collin, now that I'm back with the pantheon, you should be able to use my powers again. I need you to close your eyes and focus on what this place was like in the past. Imagine the lives of those who were here before all this.

Collin: Uh, alright?

He closes his eyes as instructed and takes a few slow breaths. After a few seconds he opens his eyes again, although they now appear to be glowing faintly. In the foyer, a ghostly image of Precantaro with both eyes still present shimmers into existence. He seems to be giving a tour to some unseen guests and laughs at an unheard joke before fading away.

Demo: Oh boy, I always wanted to visit The Haunted Mansion in person.

Collin: What was that, exactly?

Fereldir: A memory, of sorts. You can dredge up the memories of the workshop itself to see what came before you. Unfortunately it seems like this room was too broadly used, so it would be difficult to capture a useful memory here. I think we need to go deeper inside and find something like his bedroom or library, for instance. Demo: So...you're using this to figure out who or what fluxed this up, right? Fereldir: That, and to figure out where Precantaro's crystal might have wound up. It will most likely be somewhere where something significant happened to him. I still remember the layout of this place. Follow me, we'll try his bedroom first.

He leads the group up a flight of stairs, carving a path through the stray flux around them. Demo shoots Tori a curious look before shrugging and following after the god, Tori and Silky following after that. Within a few minutes, they arrive in the remains of a room that was one part bedroom, two parts study and drafting area. Tattered blueprints and notes are scattered over desks and tables all around the room, while unfinished prototypes of various machines and gadgets serve uniformly as dust collectors.

Demo: Dude ate, slept, and breathed his own work, huh? Fereldir: Precantaro was always... dedicated, I suppose would be the word for it. His passion for his craft is both his best quality and his worst. When he gets fixated on a particular project, it's tricky to pry him away for anything else.

Silky: Oh yeah, XL's the same way. One time, she tried to do a week-long campaign with a handful of severed glitches because they didn't need to sleep, but she only got about three or four days in before she found out pretty quickly that she still needed to eat. Needless to say, Almiet was...well, amused, but annoyed. Fereldir: Ah, then you know my struggles with his passion, to some extent at least. Collin, can you try again? This time try focusing on around the time of our war with Israphel as well.

Collin nods and closes his eyes again. After a few moments he opens them again, and a specter of Precantaro bursts through the door and begins frantically pacing around a table in circles.

Precantaro: Stars above curse that wretch! Nothing I do seems to phase him now! Wand foci, reinforced golems, weaponized artifices, nothing! How are we supposed to compete with an entity that's suddenly so alien, otherworldly even?!

He slams his hands down on the table and practically burns a hole in the table with his stare before a surprised look suddenly takes over. "Wait..."

He rushes over to a bookcase and snaps his fingers, causing it to slide to the side. Behind the case is a small compartment which he then opens before extracting a single black leatherbound book. He flips it open as he returns to the table. "Yes, of course... If Israphel found some unnatural source of power, then it only makes sense that something else from outside our reality could affect it." He snaps the book shut with a gleeful smile and almost skips out of the room.

Fereldir: Oh no... Precantaro what did you do? Demo: ...I'm guessing whatever he found here never showed up at your party? Fereldir: It did not, and since I don't know about this in any form, that means he kept it a secret. Demo: What, were you two close or somethin'? Fereldir: You could say that, yes. Let's try his workshop next. Hopefully we'll get a better idea of what he was up to there.

they’re gay, Demo. all the gods are gay

The god leads the others back out into the hall and further into the workshop. As they reach an intersection, they come across several destroyed golems of various material. One of the golems is actually embedded inside the wall, and there are dents and scratches all over the walls. Silky: ...This looks really bad...

Demo: How bad could it actually be? We haven't seen anything actually dangerous in this entire disaster besides this really angry flubber everywhere.

Fereldir looks over the scene for a few moments before wordlessly leading the others down the left path. As they make their way down the hall, they find more and more golems in various states of destruction as the signs of conflict stretch on to the far end.

Collin: I have a really bad feeling about this.

Demo: Last chance to run out with your tails between your legs...

Fereldir: I won't stop anyone, but I'm not turning back. Silky: Well, we're at the end of this all, right? So it'd be pretty ridiculous to just turn around and leave here. I mean, I was willing to go hypothetical guns blazing towards a meteor the size of a planet with a giant...something inside; you think I'm gonna back down for some crushed up 'robots'? In your dreams, kid.

Fereldir arches an eyebrow as he gives a side glance at Silky. "Kid?"

Demo: How old even are you?

Silky: Old enough to be older than you, but young enough to not look old. What, do you ask every retired celebrity if they're a mummy? Humans are so rude... Fereldir smirks slightly. "Ah, the tenacity of mortals. How I've missed their company..."

Collin: Uh, not to rush, but can we get to the workshop? Being out in this hallway is starting to creep me the hell out.

Fereldir: You're right, we shouldn't delay.

The group continues on a little ways further down the hall until Fereldir stops them at a set of double doors. He pushes against them and struggles for a moment before they finally budge and creak open. The workshop is a massive room with a vaulted ceiling where different elaborate contraptions hang from above. Tool racks and material stations are scattered all around the walls and floor. An array of work tables stretches from the middle of the room to the far end, upon which even more finished or partially constructed devices sit untouched. A few more broken golems are scattered about, but not nearly as many as there were out in the hall.

At the other side of the room there is a path in the wall that leads downward, and spread in front of the path is the remains of a bookcase that was probably meant to conceal the way. Silky: ...Looks like this place was...raided, I guess? Looted or raided...real sloppy work... Fawkes: I'm not so sure about that. alienrabitt: What do you mean? Fawkes: If someone wanted to break through into that passage, they would have had to swing at the bookcase from our side, and the debris would go inward. All of the wreckage is in /front/ of the path, though. Demo: So something broke out? Fawkes: Perhaps, but the question is, "What broke out?" Fereldir: Only one way to find out.

Without hesitation, he begins descending down the stairs. Demo: Well, hope it's been fun having a boyfriend; uhh...we should go home now! Yeah. Just uhh...pack it the fuck up...and we can just...not go into the murder basement.

alienrabitt: Demo, I'm going to follow them. If you don't want to do this-

Demo: No, no, no; not me; you. I don't want you to do this. Go back. We'll handle this.

alienrabitt: Wh--! I am not!! Leaving! Him! What is your damage?!

Demo: Look, you and I both know that you probably can't actually handle any more magical messes; and the last thing any of us need is both of you getting seriously messed up at the same time again. Just...

Tori shoves past Demo and goes down the stairs after Fereldir, Silky quickly following after him. Growling in frustration, Demo stays where she is, visibly debating bothering to follow or not. Daedalus: Hey, beats sticking around up here alone, right? It's probably more dangerous out here than the place whatever was down there came from. I mean, why would it go back, right? Demo: I...know; I just...ugh. He is really making this whole 'don't be bad to people' thing hard for me. Daedalus: I hear that. C'mon, let's not get left behind. The last thing I need is to get blindsided by some murdersaurus the day after I come back to life. Reluctantly, Demo descends the stairs as well. The group arrives at the bottom of the staircase and discover a room almost completely covered floor to ceiling in flux. At the opposite end of the room is a massive bulkhead door constructed of thaumium and some other unidentifiable metals. The door appears to have been torn in two by some incredible force from the inside, although it doesn't appear that there is anything on the other side of the bulkhead anymore. Demo: Oh this is bad... Collin closes his eyes, and in a moment Precantaro's ghostly image appears in the center of the room. He is on his hands and knees, although one hand is clasped over his left eye. His breathing is ragged, but after a moment he forces himself to stand back up. He looks over at the door in silence for several seconds before he speaks.

Precantaro: G-Good... the door held. It better have, with all the... enchantments and resources I crammed into it. This... This was a mistake, wasn't it? I thought I could control it, but... Hells below, what will the others think of me now?

He sounds on the verge of tears, but he takes a deep breath and pulls himself together somewhat.

Precantaro: I... I'll have to finish this later. That door should be able to hold for at least a century. There must be a better way to stop Israphel. Maybe... Maybe I've gone at this from the wrong angle- Stars, but first, I have to deal with my eye. This is going to be... a very tricky fix with no depth perception...

He turns to go up the stairs and dissipates. Demo: Oh, good; it's not a person, it's just some otherworldly, eldritch horror! Wonderful! This is going to go so well!

the monsters in your basement will always find you eventually...

Fereldir: I... I can't believe this. All this time, he's been... Silky: ...W...well? Fereldir: He told us that he lost his eye in a fight with Israphel. He's been covering this up because-

There is a sound like a whisper over the cracking of glass shards from the top of the staircase, and Fereldir goes silent. Demo: I don't think I want to know what you're implying... Fereldir: No, he was hiding this from us because he wanted to-

Several tentacles suddenly lash down the staircase and slam into the floor around them before rearing back up for another attack.

Silky draws her weapons, producing her dual energy axes. "Guess the time for talk is over!" One tentacle lashes out for Silky as soon as she speaks. Another reaches for several of the others but Fawkes slams his foot down on top of it. The last lunges for Daedalus, who blasts it away with a burst from the gauntlet. "See? I told you I'd need this thing!" As Demo summons her Candy Cane, she glances back at Tori. "Stay out of the way! You're gonna lose a lot more than an arm if you try messing with this thing!"

alienrabitt: Hey, I didn't lose the arm to a monster. Or, well, maybe I did...

Demo: Argue later! Live now! Fawkes: We can't afford to get trapped down here by whatever this is! I'm going to charge up the stairs and try to force it back! The rest of you need to make a break for it while I keep it distracted! Having merged her axes into a naginata again, Silky maneuvers herself out of the way of the tentacle lashing out for her. "...Suit yourself! Just don't get caught!" Fawkes: I don't intend to.

Fawkes deploys his jetback and sprints for the staircase, then hurtles upward back toward the entrance. There's the sound of a loud impact and a screech before the tentacles suddenly start receding back up the stairs. Grabbing Tori by his good arm, Demo charges off down the cleared path, mumbling something Tori barely manages to register in the commotion. The expression he makes is entirely unreadable as he reddens slightly and gives an answer that he cannot look at Demo to say. Collin and the others chase after them. Back in the workshop, they can see that Fawkes has managed to break away from the thing that he charged at, while the figure rises up out of the wreckage of one of the worktables. It appears to be a hovering humanoid completely concealed in a black cloak. A dark fog leaks out of the hood and the bottom of the cloak, which is also where the tentacles are reaching out from. More significantly, they can see that a large purple crystal has been wedged directly into the chest of the figure like a spear. It looks at the others and lets out another horrific screech as several more tentacles spawn from under the cloak. Demo: Yeah, of course that's where it is! Okay, now what?! Do we just keep hitting it like a piñata?! Collin: I've just gotta get close enough to grab the crystal. Once I activate it, it should pop right out of the thing and that'll hopefully cause it some serious problems. We just have to make some kind of opening for me to get close. Demo: So we need a distraction? Collin: I mean, yeah? Demo: Then I guess you came to the right mess.

The black sands of Xentrilis' Anubis blow in, forming a multitude of the bird-like dragons. Most of them get between the humanoid and Demo, though a few fall back to bodyguard Tori despite his embarrassed protests. The creature reacts immediately by lashing out with its tentacles at the dragons. Collin starts moving out to the side of the room and towards the figure, but suddenly arcane circles start to appear on the floor around it. He jumps out of the way just in time to avoid a blast of dark energy and skids off to the side.

Collin: Crap, it's got more than one trick! Silky: Yeah? So do we.

She unlinks her weapons once more, creating her dual axes as she charges in with Demo's dragons. The creature continues its assault against them as Collin gradually starts closing in on it. Once he gets close enough, he uses the air shard in his leg to kick up into the air and lunges at the figure from the side. Its arm suddenly turns into a massive claw and snatches him out of the air, holding him up as he starts to cry out in pain.

Creating the T-shape from the tournament, Silky looses the massive energy drill once again. "LET HIM GO!!" A bubble of purple energy forms around the figure just before the drill reaches it. It howls wildly as the bubble cracks under the strength of the drill and eventually shatters through. It severs the arm entirely which causes it to dissolve almost instantly. Collin, now free, creates another blast of air and latches onto the crystal. The monster shrieks in agony and forms a wicked looking dagger in its remaining hand, only to have it knocked away by a concussive blast from Daedalus' gauntlet.

Collin plants his feet against the creature's chest and rips the crystal out from its body. He goes tumbling to the floor as the crystal slides away from his grip. Unholy sounds erupt from the figure as it floats several feet away from everyone, its attacks ceasing immediately. Breathing heavily, Silky skids to a stop as Demo's dragons dispel around her. Laughing a little bit, she seems to be capable of speaking this time: "...Well...! That was easier than I thought...! ...You okay?" Collin groans slightly before he pushes himself up off the floor. "Y-Yeah, it just burned a bit, I'm alright." Demo: Well that's just great; anyway! How about you suck that thing up and we can Blue Skiddoo literally anywhere else? Collin: Alright, give me just a seco-

The creature screams again and the noise reverberates off the walls. Its shape seems to bulge and shrink randomly for several seconds before it suddenly erupts into a black and purple orb of sludge. It drops down to the floor with a sickening splat and begins expanding at an alarming pace. As it grows, inhuman eyes and mouths begin forming all over its surface, and it absorbs everything it touches. Within seconds, the mass has already taken up most of the other half of the room and blocked off the doorway out. Getting out the Candy Cane, Demo bolts for Tori. "GATE!!" Collin scrambles and snatches the crystal and sprints for the others, but the mass rapidly closes in on him. A loud "bwip" noise is heard right before it makes contact, and an enormous force field blocks the creature from expanding into the rest of the room. Just beside Collin now stands the Wandering Law, who has his hands held up to maintain the barrier. He sounds out of breath as he yells out to the others. "J-Just... in time! You can't... leave yet!"

congratulations! this is the first actually productive thing you’ve done since you got introduced!

even if you’re also the one responsible for putting everyone in danger, it was for “productive” reasons, right?

go die

alienrabitt: Seriously?! Now?! Law: This wasn't... part of the plan! I didn't know! This has to be... contained or else... it'll absorb the entire planet! Demo: Oh, again with the whole 'saving an entire thing' thing?! Are you guys trying to play Twister with lost limbs?! Law: I won't... let that happen! Just... Collin, absorb the crystal! Unlock your power and... help me seal this thing!

Collin looks at the crystal and then back to the mass barely being held back by the barrier. A flash of light causes several things to happen at once. The crystal flies back to merge with Fereldir just like his own did, the tattooed band on Collin's arm seems to break away like a physical object, and a rush of power causes the runic markings to spread completely over his body once again. However, rather than being purple, the markings rapidly phase through the color spectrum in a wave that runs up and down his body.

Without hesitation, Collin joins Law in sustaining the forcefield, causing it to shift in color just like his markings. Gradually, the pair starts to shrink the horrific blob back down more and more, although Collin's markings rapidly begin to recede again. It screeches from every mouth in protest as it is forced back, but eventually the pair manage to shrink it down to the size of a marble. Law makes a twisting motion with his hands, and the barrier seems to lock and vanish from sight, transforming it into what appears to be an ordinary black and purple marble.

he’s RGB now

RGB stands for...Really Gay Boyfriend

Demo: ...Oh, well. Probably for the best...I'm pretty sure Tori doesn't have the magic to make a gate right now anyway... Both Law and Collin seem equally too exhausted to respond at first, although Law carefully reaches down and picks the marble up off the floor before casually stowing it away in his jacket.

Law: Alright... Are you kids okay? Silky: Somehow, I think so...! Law: Good... Good... I'm sorry, I had no idea one of these gods was stowing an... extradimensional monstrosity in their basement. That's a little outside of the scope of what I had in mind for you. Demo: Riiight...well, I'm sure you have some sort of...soliloquy or something about this mess? Law: Well I did, but... I used up all my energy containing a world consuming entity. I gotta get back and put this thing somewhere safe. The fact that Collin's colors changed is already a good sign, so... I think you're in better shape now. I'm sure we'll meet up again sometime, and I promise not to take someone's powers away anymore. I'll buy you kids a drink or something as a reward... You guys are of age, right? Silky: I can't speak for Rio, and I'm pretty sure XL would just...burn it up, but everyone else should be fine? Law: Cool, cool...

He has a short coughing fit. "Alright, I gotta bounce. Stay safe, now."

Without waiting for a response, he suddenly vanishes just as quickly as he appeared. Demo: Oh thank god he didn't actually monologue. I was entirely prepared to sleep through it. Anyway; Easter's over; let's go the fuck home. Collin: Y-Yeah, let's... get the hell out of here.

Collin puts one hand to his head and clumsily drops down to one knee. "... Can someone help me out? I'm a little dizzy." Putting her weapons away finally, Silky scoops Collin up into her arms. "Out we go, then!"

[MUGEN announcer voice]

ROMANTIC

Fereldir takes point and leads the group back out of the workshop and inside the IT.

Fereldir: Now, there's still one last matter that needs to be addressed. We didn't have a chance during the fight, but we need to have a talk with Precantaro. If anyone would like to be present for that, you can stay near me. Otherwise, feel free to go get some rest.

Collin: Silky, you can let me down. I need to stay for this. Setting Collin down gently, Silky nods as she leaves for XL's room. Demo and Tori remain behind. Fawkes gives a slight nod to the others and leaves as well, although Daedalus stays behind with the others.

Daedalus: I'm interested to see how this stuff plays out. Apparently this is a regular thing for you guys, huh? Demo: It has been for...what, a week now? Two? Collin: Something like that. It's been kind of a blur honestly.

Fereldir: Well, let's not waste any more time.

There is a flash of light, and the group finds themselves in the foggy void one last time. The rest of the pantheon surrounds them aside from Precantaro, who emerges from the fog a few moments later. His gaze seems locked to the floor, unable to look at the others.

Precantaro: Well.... I'm not sure what there is for me to say anymore. You've seen almost everything I could tell you, give or take some details.

Fereldir: My only real question is this: Why did you hide this from us? Why didn't you ask us for help at any point before you lost your eye? Do you not trust us, or-

Precantaro: N-No! I trust you all with everything! I just... I wanted to prove that I was able to solve something. I mean, that's what my magic is! Finding problems, studying them, and discovering a solution. Israphel was the problem, and I thought I had a solution! Once I had the creature controlled, I was going to surprise you all with its reveal. When it all went wrong, I... I couldn't admit my failure. In truth, I think all that time I spent studying that book altered my mind, clouded my judgement. Looking back on it now, it was almost as if I was... a different god entirely. It took the loss of my eye to snap me out of my fugue, and in truth I probably deserved more than that.

Fereldir: I want you to promise me something, Precantaro. Promise me that you'll never keep a secret like this again. That if you find a problem, or run into trouble, you'll come to us for help. You don't need to hide anything from us. I love you; we love you. Can you promise that?

Precantaro's voice quakes as he teeters on the brink of sobbing. "Y-Yes... I promise. I'm s-sorry, Fereldir..."

Fereldir approaches Precantaro and rests his hands on either side of his face. "You're forgiven, love."

He pulls him into a kiss, and the fog suddenly dissipates all at once. An elaborate marble floor suddenly forms underneath their feet, and the rest of a mighty temple begins to construct itself around them. Stained glass images of each god assemble themselves in the walls above individual doors, and a great altar appears at the far end of the temple.

Ezorius: Aha, looks like the godspace is finally pulling itself back together again! Demo: Either that or we suddenly got invited to a wedding. Sanglied: Nah, they did that ages ago, although we can do a reenactment if you want. Can we include the part where I drank all the wine and wrestled Tellus over the feast table?

Tellus: Please no, my back hurts just thinking about it...

I love the shenanigans between these two tbh

Brahmzen: At any rate, I think we should let the mortals return to the real world. Ezorius: Ah, you're right. See you back on the other side! /With one last blinding flash, the group finds themselves dropped back into the console room, although Sanglied appears to have taken over for Fereldir. Demo: Well, this has been...this has been. I'm gonna go drink. Shaking her head, she leaves for the kitchen. Daedalus: You guys really are crazy, huh? I don't know how you guys do that every day...

He wanders off back to his room, shaking his head. alienrabitt: Honestly, I don't even care. I'm just glad everything's okay again... Collin: No kidding. Although the rainbow color's gonna take some getting used to. I need to figure out if I can hide this or something, 'cause otherwise sleeping is gonna get difficult. alienrabitt: Hey, unless it spreads to your face, it's not a problem. Collin: You say that now, but it's gonna look like a disco in our bedroom once I build up enough charge. alienrabitt: Pff; yeah, I guess...! Good luck figuring that one out... Collin: Gee, so supportive.

He rolls his eyes jokingly and then kisses Tori on the cheek. "I love you, Tori." alienrabitt: I love you too! Even if you're the aurora borealis now... Collin scoops Tori up off the floor and carries him off down the hall. "Alright, off to jail with you." alienrabitt: Heheh, what; I can't make jokes too?

alrighty, next log’s a Big One!!

#[S3]

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mrs-nih · 7 years ago

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The Hand of Ganesha

if your reading this, this is just something that had been on my mind for a while and some one dared me to writ it down. would love to know your thoughts, please forgive the grammar I was in a rush to write it all down.

The glass display case stood under a beam of moonlight in the day it probably looked more manifesting, but right now it was more on the treacherous side. Sitting behind a box of thick glass was crudely put together by long flat stakes that were stained by age, barley enough room to writ anything on them but small characters went down each stake. Tattered cloth wrapped around each skinny stake, and then bound on its spine by a waxy substance. A small brass plate was found in the corner of the front of the case with a description ‘book of rituals from the Xia dynasty’. “its not rituals book” Lunie said laying her head on my shoulder “a lot of people thought it was, even back then, blame it on bad translation, and the inebriation on the authors part. You are looking at the mortis aegrotationum integer vitae tellus. Also know as deaths cookbook…vol2” I looked at her as if she was joking, she had to be, why would such a thing excites “deaths cookbook” Glancing up at me flashing a smile she nodded, and put two fingers up “vol2” “why would death have a cookbook” “apparently, long before the Xia dynasty, there was a tribe of shaman, or Wu, or Xian as they might have called them. Powerful bunch, that served even powerful gods that are long forgotten, one of these gods was over death and sacrifice. And back then animal along with human sacrifices where very popular. These shaman believed that their god of death would collect their sacraments to the gods and being the youngest death would prepare the sacrifices in fine gourmet meals that suited the gods, and serve his older brethren with jewel incrusted plates. He would work all day gathering souls, taking up sacrifices, and On top of that his no one left him any food he would starve every night and day as the others grew stronger from his cooking. Now the story goes that this representation of death had gotten tired and being the footstool of his family and went insane from hunger, resulting in him killing all of his kin turning them in his own buffet, gaining their powers and strength. He felt bad that the tribe had no one to look after them, so he wrote a cookbook with all his recipes that would please any god, and any royal family for that mater. with the book and needing a new purpose they ventured off in the world cooking impressing kings and queens through out the ages, both mortal and immortal. As for the death god, he was soon forgotten, some stories saying he died others saying he still wonders the earth making meals for random folks.” Getting off my shoulder she stepped closer to the case serving it for its security. Shifting the bags I had in my hands from out other ventures, we stuffed stolen high end bags of stolen high end artifacts and jewelry. We wanted some paintings but then we thought it would be too much to carry them under out arms “so if this is the second book what happened to the first one, and why is it the book in a museum instead at some immortal mansion” “vo1 disappeared when the last of his tribe died out” lifting the wrench she took from our previous trespassing over her head “and although the meals were heavenly, you do go insane after a few meals resulting in acts of cannibalism. Anything meant for a god ends in treble result for none gods.” She swung down breaking the glass and triggering the alarm. She grabbed the book shaking of the execs glass and the grabbed my arm. The world stopped sifting we were standing in my forge, Lunie was admiring the book “but vol2 is just as if to more valuable then the first” Placing ur bounty on the workbench I started doing a metal inventory “so what is it made out of” “the cannibal victim’s bones” I looked at her in disgust “oh don’t judge them, this was in a time when it was unique to use victim body parts for historic recordings, and one to talk you eat hearts” She got me there, but I don't make weapons out of them…I have o take that back. there was this one time but it was a long time ago and I still am sickened by it. although it did make a pretty cool weapon, and I got a good sum of money from it, but I'm sure telling her would just help her with her case. Looking at the our trove some of the things didn’t quit make sense, a wooden malt from a museum exhibited ‘tools across the ages’ in France, a monocle that was among an array of Knick-knacks in a china cabinet from Arabia, and the cook book from china which she says is worth a lot but still looks like a weird old book no one is going to want. I still don’t know why she stole the other two things, she had no story for the either, it was like she just wants to take old junk for random places. Everything else was worth so much more, and you didn’t have to know some ancient story to know it worth. Diamonds, jewels, gold the things people really care about. “my my” jerking around instinctively grabbing the closest weapon to fight, I saw her standing by my anvil her lethal nails taping on the metal. Those deadly blue eyes peering at the both of us “don’t you two look chummy” she spat. “Worden” giving her a smile that felt queasy “you seem upset” which gave me reason to keep my weapon in hand which turned out to be my hammer, no magic in it but just as deadly in my hands. “if I am I think I have a good reason to be” her nails raked the smooth metal as she strutted towards me “if I'm not mistaken Blacksmith” she was defiantly pissed but what for I don’t know, maybe she was just impatient “we had a contract, and I gave you half the money upfront, and yet when I come to check on my investment. Where do I find you, not working but traveling the globe with my employee, which I will be having a discussion with later.” She glanced at Lunie that sent shiver up my spine, looking at Lunie. My fearless blue haired demon was frozen I fear. For a time that lasted longer then it should have, I glared back at the Worden, my mind didn’t see her as someone I needed to fear, but some one that was a threat to my happiness. I thought of a thousand things to end her life or at least make it worst then the stat she’s in now. It would have been a million but I was interrupted by her yelling “Blacksmith” her dark lips almost pulled back in a snarled “she glanced between Lunie and I “don’t let feeling be the reason for your demise, take it for me there is multiple ways to die.” She turned walking towards some of the weapons that hung on the wall, Lunie snaked over to my side. Her fingers trembled as they slid down my wrist to the hammer handle, I didn’t look at her not wanting to take my eyes of Worden. But I tightened my grip wondering why she would take my protection from me “she wont hurt you” she whispered “your deal isn’t don’t with her yet” “What about you” “My deal isn’t done either” tearing my eye way I looked at her, fear wasn't even close to describing what I saw in her. That spark, that insanity that I love was dossed out. slowly I, reluctantly I loosened my grip letting the hammer fall in her hands. “your talent is incomparable” the warden said running her fingers over the various creations “and what is this feeling, it like there calling out, like a newborn wanting to be held” “they have no master to wield them, so they cry out to any one hoping to claim them” She got to section of the wall that was of just fun projects that haven't even been test yet, stuff I couldn’t part with because they held too many memories. Coming on the a revolver I made one summer that took all my time to make but it was fun getting the gears and small parts to work together “they inspire such beautifully thoughts of homicidal tendency” Picking up the gun she open the cylinder “where are the bullets” “it doesn't need them” I said hoping that she doesn't figure out how it works. “what have you names this one” she examined it as if trying to figure it out with out my help. “the hand of Ganesha” She looked up with wide eyes ‘the remover of obstacles” she flicked the gun closing the cylinder, a faint smile came to her face, with out even hesitating she closed her eyes holding gun close to her face one hand on the trigger the other parallel to the barrel pointing up in a prayer pose opening her eyes she looked at us. Making sure I covered Lunie, I hoped I could stop harm getting to her but with this gun there was no stopping its aim. Still in her prayer pose “I don’t like playing games, Blacksmith. And I was hoping that I wouldn’t come to this, but I see I have no choice” she lowered the gun aiming straight to me her eyes colder then before, her breathing was steady and her demeanor was calm, as if we were just target practice. Is this it is this the way I go, ended by the things I loved to make, clamed by something I gave life to. She puled the hammer down and with one slow breath she squeezed the trigger. The shout thunder through the space, the sound was so powerful the windows shook and my ear drums rung. A I felt myself fletch but I couldn’t keep my eyes away form her frozen blue ones, ivory smoke came form the gun bellowing out the muzzle and danced around her. as she pulled the hammer again and squeezed the trigger, the grip changed colors of the grip was morphing from black to a swirl of pearl and plum. Greenish smoke came form the shoot that was bigger and flashed brighter then the one before, almost shattered the windows and rumbled the room, the colors settled in to a marbled handle claiming it master never to betray her. I felt a hot tear fall down my face my face as the smoked cleared, waiting on some kind of paint to hit me or the feeling of something gushing from me. But nothing came. Turing I examined Lunie there was no wounds on her, besides same fear from before she was ok “I want my weapon by tonight, or next shoot will kill them all.” I stayed facing Lunie as I heard the warden leave. Gun powder lingered aggravating my nostrils, the ringing in my ears seemed to be getting louder, and the trembling in my fingers was unbearable. Nether Lunie or I was hurt but the shoot were fired and her warning was very clear. “what was that” she was trembling worse than me and tears where starting to force there way out of her. “the hand of Ganesha…”pulling out my phone I focused to still my trebling enough to press the buttons “pray to the gun to remove whatever obstacles stand in your way, the bigger the obstacle the bigger the explosion” I called mom first it went to voice mail, then i dialed foolish same result. “mom nor foolish are answering” not a moment later Lunie gabbed my hand and we transported in the middle of down town surrounded by shops and restaurants we just appeared amongst crowd of people walking around. I felt eyes on me and conversations involving us. Franticly I surveyed the area trying to find one of them, I wasn’t sure who she sent us to first getting my attention Lunie pointed across the street at mom in the arms of the judge. Form the way they were looking at each other nothing in the world was bothering them. I didn’t have to say anything, I felt the world enclose around me and opened in a room with knock out roses wall paper, remembering how I knew this room I saw its owner Fabien crouched down to the floor and Foolish was laying on the floor unmoving, no air moving is chest, and a pool of jade blood, growing around his head. Fabien eyes meet mine “he got shot the bullet came form nowhere, he's not coming back, he always comes back in a meter of seconds but he has moved, I saw him get hit by a canon, beheaded, and ripped apart by wild horses. He always came back” “can the gun kill some one like him” I didn’t even know where Lunie was, I didn’t even realize I was sitting on the floor by his head helpless I held my hands over him trying to figure out some way to fix him but I was way over my head. i heard Lunie asked her question and her calling my name but I couldn't speak. Foolish was indestructible, with his history he was suppose to survive anything, bounce back from any wound no matter how great the weapon. Yet here he lies by one of my own creations. i tested the gun before but I not on a person, an di would have never guessed it would be able to kill some one like Foolish. Yelling my name this time with a shack on my shoulder “….twice” “what” “She fired the gun twice, and there's only one shout in him.” So who else did she shoot, mom was fine, I shrugged I couldn’t even get my mind to focus on one thing. It was whirlwind of emotions and thoughts. But one thing for sure I was going to kill the warden by the end of the night. “where can we take him” Lunie sounded more scared then I was. “no hospital, humans couldn’t help him even if they what they where doing” “E” barley whispering but I could feel both sets of eyes on me. Taking Foolish’s head I laid him in my lap cradling him close “Uncle E should know what to do, mom would be to hysterical, and no one would ever help a vagabond.” I felt a hand on my shoulder and for a moment a split second I felt the smallest spark of hope but that was diminish quickly. The cavern was no longer the bight fun filled carnival before, no one was around as if for the first tie it was closed. None of the games where on, some where covered in dust as if never played and some where rusting and quickly falling part. The smell of old popcorn and grease invaded my noise, a few of the fistive light were still light but flickering out. gather foolish in my arm I stood up looking at the dystopia “hello” my voice echoed off the walls, no response back. then looking ahead there was a figure standing in the fading light, focusing on it, I recognized the guy. Although I never seen him in any other position then setting at the diner bar sleeping over a cup of coffee, I knew him. He didn’t say anything, I wasn’t even sure if he was staring back at me but hs dead eyes where in our direction. Turning he headed down the path I knew to the prize room. the whole way I zoned out knowing what to except when we got there, and trying too prepare myself for it was impossible. The lights that came from under the door was fading in and out a faint sound of harsh breathing came form behind it. on one side of the door stood the cook head down arms folded , his head hung low and his eyes close. Before reaching the door the bar guy took his stands on the other side of the door posing the same statue like pose as his companion. emotions filled my eyes as I situated foolish in a different position so I could get the knob. Twisting the knob I walked in to see betty jerking up to see us with make up running down her face and eyes red and puffy. Her hands was glowing a pale light as it applied pressure to Uncle E’s chest, looking up a the ceiling he struggled to breath and only inches from leaving this plain. The lights mimicked his breathing getting dimmer with each breath. I could faintly her betty telling me to lay foolish next to E as I saw my world crashing down around me. I placed him next to E, with a glowing palm Betty laid her other hand on his wound. Hugging my knees to my chest I watched in the corner as Betty worked on them, I could see she was straining to do her best but I could see the end and I wasn’t sure how I was going to piece my life back together after this. Lunie wrapped her arms over me as she sat with me, and Fabien was standing opposite of us watching it all happen. His eyes red with tears, I wanted to yell, why was he here he wasn’t there for Foolish the whole time I knew him and longer before that. I want to shut , fight , kill, but that was his brother on the floor and I had no right to push him out. We watched for what seemed to be hours as Betty proceeded her attempt to heal them, but there was no improvement in either of them. The whole time I kept hoping Foolish would pop up and say one of his bizarre stories or one of those stupid jokes. Or even goodbye. Soon the lights in the came to a point you could barley see figures, then Betty’s hands were the only source of light. Then. Nothing. Soft cries came from Lunie and Fabien, I could even here a few sniffs from outside the door, but I was silent, I couldn’t bring myself to cry, yell, to be angry, to fell anything. I was numb beyond comparison, I never thought I would see the person that taught me so much and allowed me to do the same leave. No hart felt moment no, no last words, just gone. I saw a faint glow fill up the room but my gaze couldn’t break from there bodies. I heard foot steps near me then a cold wet hand on my chin forcing me to look away. Betty was glaring at me in a way I never experienced from any one, it was a shared pain that only we understood. She placed a lantern next to us as her bloody hand kept hold of me I don't like you, in fact I really hate you. But we are one in the same, we are killers, and enjoy doing so, we take great pleasure and pride in our art. And dare any one to say other wise. Me and you we don’t fell the need to cry, we are not made to cry. We are made to start and finish wars over those that were taken from us” the fir e in her was igniting in me the numbness was still there but it was joined by soothing else “Emotions tend to slow down what we need to do.” Rage, it was rage every thing else became nothing until all there was left was rage “find those that destroyed you” she looked back at them “destroyed us” a small termer came off her lip but went bac to the cold line before. “Find them, rip the apart. Know this will not bring you peace, but it will warm you to feast on their veil harts.” She pulled me up, standing with her she had a weak smile “I never seen you like this before, your eyes are so black, and teeth so sharp.” She placed a hand on my cheek, she peered into me, and I her. We had an understanding, nothing was to stop me, noting would save me form the path I was going down. But that didn’t matter, none of it did all that I cared for was satisfying my Rage and hunger.

#dared to write #forgotten gods

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thdorkmagnet · 4 years ago

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Light of the Sun and Stars Chapter 41: Baby

Summary: His whole life Marco Diaz has been raised by monsters, living under the cruel rule of their leader, Toffee. But one day Marco escapes into Mewni where he meets a magical princess and Mewman like himself, who begins teaching him all about her world. Together they will learn about life, love, and the lights within each of them, as they change their world forever.

Chapter Synopsis: The time has come for Star’s magic performance review to test her knowledge and growth as the wielder of the wand. Although Star is nervous her and Marco have done all they can to prepare her for the test and they are confident she will pass. But when Baby arrives things don’t exactly go the way they planned…

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Disclaimer: Star vs and all its characters are owned by Daron Nefcy and Disney. All rights go to them.

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"Okay concentrate, Star. You can do this," Marco said in an encouraging tone, making sure to keep a supportive smile on his face as he watched his girlfriend cross her arm into an 'x' symbol, the wand held tightly in her left palm, pulsing with pink magic just waiting to be set free.

Star closed her eyes, sucking in a deep breath, before muttering softly to herself, "I can do this." The girl then began an intricate series of steps, the wand waving around as her body gracefully danced through each technique with practiced ease, Marco completely awestruck by his girlfriend's movements no matter how many times he had seen it in the last few days. The way Star owned every flick of her wrist or turn of her hip left Marco speechless, her body moving with the grace and poise of a professional ballerina. Her feet were always in the correct position and her arms were always kept at just the right angle, the wand leaving trails of magic sprinkling to the ground with each new gesture.

Finally, Star held the wand aloft, shouting in a clear, calm voice, "Warnicorn Stampede!" There was a burst of pink magic in front of the blond royal, before a single, tiny unicorn appeared in front of them, looking completely harmless and adorable. "Aww," Marco cooed, unable to resist fawning over the cute creature his girlfriend had just created. The little unicorn let out an adorable neigh before trotting forward right into a head-on collision with Star's couch.

Star face-palmed, groaning in annoyance and disappointment, before loudly exclaiming, "Ugh, what am I doing wrong? Why can't I figure out this lousy spell?!"

"Well it is the hardest spell in the book," Marco pointed out, as he flipped through page after page of Star's spellbook, trying not to get lost in the intriguing and dense knowledge this book contained. "Glossaryk said most queens can take years to learn it."

"Yeah well if I don't get this down soon, I'm gonna fail the magic exam for sure," Star retorted, crossing her arms bitterly in front of her chest.

Marco thought over his reply for a moment, trying to come up with the best way to comfort his friend. He knew Star had been stressing ever since the Magic High Commission first announced Star have a magic performance review to see how far her abilities with the wand had come. They had given Star only a week to prepare for the upcoming exam and since then Marco had spent hours upon hours helping to get Star ready for the test. And now, on the day of said exam, he knew she was more than ready for anything her examiner could throw at her. But it was Star who needed the convincing, second-guessing herself as she failed the one spell in the book she had yet to master. Not that he blamed her, the pressure had to be unbearable for her, failing would mean proving to the world that she was unfit to wield the wand and Marco knew how terrified Star was of being seen that way.

Failure was simply not an option. Especially since both Star and Marco suspected the whole exam was just another scheme by the MHC to sabotage their commission. Star seemed to have no doubt that if she didn't pass the MHC would disband their commission so that Star could 'focus on her studies', which only added to the pressure the blond royal was feeling. Finally, the hooded teen spoke in the most reassuring tone he could, "You aren't going to fail, Star. We've been practicing all week, you've read the Book of Spells top to bottom, you know every spell including the ones that were removed from the book, you're more than ready."

"Except for the one spell I can't get right," Star reminded him, gesturing over to the little unicorn who was now chewing on Star's couch cushion. "If Baby asks me to cast Warnicorn Stampede I'm totally dead."

"Well remember what Glossaryk said, your emotions affect your magic, that's probably why you can't cast it," Marco pointed out, still flipping through pages of the spellbook. "I'm sure you'll get it down in time." He cringed as he came across a page covered in chains with a large skull on it, quickly flipping to a different page. When he had first come across that he had asked Star about it and all she had told him was that it was a forbidden chapter and that no one was allowed to look in it. Marco had steered clear of that section of the book ever since. Though he did wonder why Glossaryk hadn't removed it with the rest of the dangerous spells.

"Yeah, you're right," the blond replied, letting out a breath of relief, her hands fiddling with the handle of her wand. "I guess I'm just nervous, is all."

Marco closed the book before going over to his girlfriend and pulling her into a comforting hug. "Hey, I believe in you. I know you're gonna pass this test with flying colors," he whispered into her shoulder. He could feel Star's body relaxing in his grip as she let out a deep sigh, finally untensing for the first time in hours, maybe even days.

"Thanks, Marco," the girl said, before finally pulling out of the hug, a bright grin on her pretty face. "What would I do without you?"

Marco shrugged. "Don't know, though you'd probably get a lot fewer hugs," the boy said playfully.

Star laughed before giving him a friendly shove, chuckling, "I'm serious!" The two shared a laugh before the blond gave him a shy grin, the gentle look in her crystal blue eyes sending goosebumps down Marco's spine. "Thanks though, Marco. Really, I mean it. You have no idea how much you've helped out this week and I don't just mean helping me get ready for the test. If it weren't for you I'd probably be a jittery mess by now."

"Ah, I doubt that," Marco replied, his cheeks flushing some. "You're way braver than I am, Star."

"Hey, don't sell yourself short," Star retorted, cupping his face in her hand while giving her boyfriend a loving smile. "You're just as brave as I am, maybe even more. The only reason I'm so brave is because of you. When I see you facing whatever makes you afraid it makes me want to do the same." The girl then leaned forward giving her boyfriend a tender kiss on the lips. Marco closed his eyes letting the moment wash over him, the two besties sharing a blissful moment as one, their heartbeat once again beating in time together.

Finally, the two parted, giving each other goofy but incredibly happy looks, their cheeks painted pink as Marco finally said, "Well I'm glad I could help." The girl laughed before pressing her forehead to his. "You always are."

"So you think you're ready to try that spell again, Star?" Marco asked, giving her an encouraging smile. He felt Star's body tense up just slightly but the hooded teen could now see the resolve in her eyes as she nodded.

"Yeah, let's do it," the girl said with unwavering determination.

Marco stood back as Star crossed her arms again, taking a few smooth breaths before beginning the Incantation Dance once again. Her body moved as fluidly as before, every step perfect and on point as she went through the motions just like every time beforehand, but to Marco's surprise Star's wand was now glowing white instead of the typical pink and her hearts were glowing brighter than ever. Finally, the girl finished her spin before holding the wand overhead and shouting, "Warnicorn Stampede!"

Marco watched slack-jawed as at least a dozen warnicorns appeared behind her in a puff of smoke, neighing loudly as they galloped through Star's room in a wild herd, knocking over anything they came close to and impaling objects with their sharp horns. Star undid the spell quickly, leaving her room a tattered mess but she didn't seem to care as she began jumping up and down in joy shouting, "I did it! Marco, I did it! I just pulled off my very first Warnicorn Stampede!"

"Oh Star I'm so happy for you!" Marco shouted as Star pulled him into an excited hug. She lifted him off the ground spinning him around in a circle as the two laughed and cheered for the blond's success. Once Marco was on his feet again, the boy declared, "I knew you could do it!"

"Thank, Marco, guess you believing in me was all I needed," Star said, her bright grin incapable of vanishing, her eyes gleaming with self-pride and it made Marco's own heart leap at the sight. He couldn't think of the last time he saw Star this happy with herself and it made him swell with pride knowing he had been partially responsible for his girlfriend's positive change in attitude.

But a ringing from Star's phone drew their attention away from all the celebrating as Star ran over and picked up her mirror, flipping it open to read the new message. Her eyes widened before she turned to Marco and said, "Looks like I figured it out just in time, too. Baby's on her way now. Shawn just gave me the head's up."

"Wait, since when do you and Shawn talk to each other?" Marco asked in confusion.

"Since I bribed him with some of our super awesome nachos, no creature can resist those," Star replied, shooting her boyfriend a wink.

Marco smiled before focusing on the task at hand, asking, "Okay so how long do we have?"

Star shrugged. "Not long, she could be here any minute," the blond replied, biting her lip as her anxiety returned full force.

"Okay well I'll go check on the food, you stay here and... clean up," Marco said. The two cringed at they looked around at Star's destroyed room.

"Good idea," the blond replied, putting her mirror phone away before starting to work repairing her room back to its normal state.

"Back in a few," Marco said as he ran for the door, wanting to hurry and not leave his girlfriend alone for too long. He needed to be there when Baby arrived to help keep Star calm. Besides he was beyond curious who this Baby was after a week-long build-up.

"Okay," Star called after him, pushing out any troubling thoughts as she just focused on her task, thankful for something to do to keep her mind off everything. The last thing she needed now was to psych herself out.

…

A loud distasteful scoff filled the castle kitchen, followed by a very sarcastic voice. "Ugh, seriously you call this a grand kitchen, even their measuring cups are unorganized, talk about amateur hour," Kelly stated with a roll of her eyes, her eyes not even on the pot she was stirring as she just gazed around the fancy kitchen critically. A feast of already finished dishes lay spread out on the countertops around her, everything from cookies to cornbread to even a cooked turkey was present, all of them cooked to perfection and beyond appetizing. So appetizing in fact that Ferguson, Alfonso, and even Glossaryk were all drooling over them, staring at each steaming plate with hungry eyes. "And what's with all the cheap bowls and spoons? My grandmother has better kitchen utensils," Kelly continued in a mocking tone.

"Geez, Kelly. Why don't you tell us something you don't like about the place?" Janna said sarcastically, leaning against the counter with a bored expression.

"Oh, haha, very funny," Kelly said back, shooting the creepy girl a glare. "I'm just saying, it's no wonder Marco asked me to come help cook cause this is just disgraceful." In one fluid motion, the green-haired girl had poured the contents of the bowl into a pan and set that in the oven to bake, slamming it closed with her foot as she set the small timer.

"Well, that and the chefs all conveniently called in sick on the exact day that Baby arrived," Janna added in a knowing tone, rolling her eyes.

"Yes, what are the odds of that?" Kelly agreed sarcastically. "But luckily for you, I was free for the day. Besides this is a great opportunity for me, cooking for a guest of royalty." The girl picked up a spatula and smacked Ferguson's hand as he reached for a nearby cookie.

"Ow!" the chubby king whined as he massaged his sore hand. "That hurt!"

"Hands off the food! I didn't slave over this for six hours so you could snack!" Kelly shouted to the boy, who shrunk some in his seat from the intensity of her glare.

"Well, that's not a problem for me," Glossaryk said, before making a chanting noise, a cookie slowly rising off the plate, suspended by magic. But it dropped back to the plate as Kelly smacked the small blue man on the top of the head, breaking his concentration.

"And that includes with magic," Kelly added, her voice full of fire and brimstone as she cast warning glances to the magical being and then Ferguson and Alfonso, all of whom gave her guilty looks back. "Now anybody else wanna try?"

All three shook their heads.

"Good," Kelly said, a smile instantly appearing on her face as she set down the spatula. She hummed to herself as she went back to preparing the next item on the menu.

"I forgot how terrifying you Wooletts can be," Glossaryk commented, a sad frown on his normally blank face.

"And don't you forget it," Kelly said with a proud grin, giving the three a smug look as she flipped her hair.

On top of said hair, Tad let out an affectionate sigh. "I love it when you're terrifying, babe," he said flirtingly.

"You love it when I do anything, Tad," the girl replied, hiding a smile.

"Yes, but that's because everything you do is amazing!" Tad said and the girl flushed.

"Aw, Tad!" Kelly cooed. She quickly directed her attention back on her work though, as she started to dice vegetable, her hand moving at an almost inhuman speed, somehow managing to avoid her fingers with each rapid swing of the sharp blade. "So who's this Baby anyways?"

"Oh just someone the Magic High Commission decided to send to do Star's magic review," Janna explained.

"Well she must be pretty hungry if she's gonna eat all this," Kelly commented as she continued to chop away, casting a quick glance at their food supply.

"Oh trust me on this, Baby is a bottomless pit when it comes to food," Glossaryk spoke up. "And the more we feed her, the better chances of Star passing are."

"Isn't that bribery?" Kelly asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Hey, we're just making sure our guest is happy," Janna said while casually leaning back and putting her feet on the countertop leaning as far back in the chair as it would allow. "And if it helps us out in the end, what's wrong with that?"

Kelly just rolled her eyes, a small smile on her lips as she pushed Janna's boots off the countertop. "You're impossible," she muttered under her breath.

"You forgot to mention creepy and charming," Janna replied, sitting back up in her chair once again.

Suddenly, the door to the kitchen slammed open, a panting Marco quickly running inside. "Hey guys!" he called loudly, sliding across the smooth tile floor and coming to a stop in front of them. "Oh wow, the food looks great Kelly!"

"Thanks, Marco, you should have more than enough food for your guest," the girl replied, before smacking the grabbing hand of Ferguson. "That is if these three don't end up eating it all."

Marco laughed, before taking a big sniff of the food spread out before him. "Well, it all smells delicious! I'm sure Baby's gonna love it!" the hooded teen exclaimed, a wide smile on his face. "Thanks for coming to help out Kelly, I really appreciate it. I know you've been pretty busy getting ready for that big baking competition coming up."

"Eh, it's not a problem. I'm already more or less ready for that," the girl continued as she started tossing the salad in the bowl before her.

"You must be excited though," Marco continued. "I mean, being asked to represent Fang Tangs this year, that's a huge honor!"

Kelly smiled proudly to herself but kept her voice as humble as possible as she replied, "Yeah it is pretty nice." She paused before adding in a hinting tone, raising her eyebrows knowingly, "Though I am still in need of two other chefs to help me."

Marco nodded. "Me and Star'll be there. No problem, Kelly."

"Good, cause the recipe I have in mind is gonna need some help to pull off."

"Are you planning on using the..." Marco leaned in closer and cupped a hand around his mouth to prevent the others from hearing, before whispering, "... top-secret project."

"Marco, that's still in the testing phase and you know it," the girl hissed back, shooting him a nervous look.

The boy immediately slapped a hand over his mouth. "Oh sorry," the boy replied in a muffled tone.

"Uh, you know we don't care, right?" Janna commented.

The two quickly whipped their heads over to her before sharing another serious look, silently communicating the need to keep that project just between them, while Janna rolled her eyes. Ferguson, seeing Kelly distracted, once again tried to reach for the tray and grab a freshly baked pastry only to receive a smack over the head from Kelly's spatula, the girl not even turning as she knocked him back in one swift motion.

"Ouch!" the boy screamed loudly, before pouting in the Woolett's direction.

"Nice try," Kelly responded. "But I have eyes in the back of my head. Or in this case..." She pointed up to Tad who was facing toward backwards now, watching the three closely. "...on the back of my head."

Marco couldn't help but laugh at the joke, while Ferguson muttered something under his breath, complaining about the terrible treatment he was receiving despite being a king and made a mental note to raise the mirror tax on Kelly's phone when he got back.

"Well, I better get back to Star," Marco said, before racing out of the room as quickly as he had entered. "Just bring up the food whenever it's ready. Star said Baby should be here any minute."

"Okay!" Kelly called after the boy, her focus on the salad as she put the finishing touches on the appetizer grating shredded cheese onto it with all the care and precision of an artist painting a portrait. "There that should do it!" she exclaimed, wiping the sweat from her brow, before turning to the others. "Now who wants to help me bring all this up?"

No one said a word and Kelly just sighed before adding in a slightly annoyed tone, "I'll let you guys have a free meal at Fang Tang's on the house."

The four all jumped to attention quickly rushing around as they grabbed carts and trays to help carry the mountain of food before them, getting right to work and eager to help now that the prospect of free food was on the table. Kelly just watched the four with a deadpanned glare, muttering under her breath, "Figures."

…

Marco was running down the hallway, hoping he wasn't too late. He knew Star needed him to be there for whenever Baby arrived but he had accidentally stayed in the kitchen much longer than he had planned. Which meant he was in way too big a rush, trying to take every shortcut in the massive castle he could think of, barely paying any attention to his surroundings as he focused only on getting back to Star. Which meant he didn't spot the two little girls clearly hiding behind a nearby pillar (their bodies only half-hidden behind it) giggling amongst themselves. But as the boy approached the two suddenly jumped out, shouting as one, "Sneak attack!"

The boy tried to slide to a stop but he was powerless to stop the two girls from latching onto his chest, giggling incessantly the whole time as the boy crashed to the floor with a yelp. The two clung to his middle, still laughing as the boy groaned in surprise and pain from the short fall. "Ugh, girls?" he muttered groggily, his head spinning as he tried to process how and why he was laying on the floor with Daisy and Violet on top of him.

"We got you, Big Brother!" Violet shouted, now sitting on his stomach and grinning ear to ear. "You fell right into our trap!"

"Were you surprised, Big Brother?" Daisy asked with wide, innocent eyes.

Marco couldn't help but chuckle a little himself as he picked each girl up and set them aside so he could stand once again. "Yep, I sure was, you two definitely got me," he said with a bright grin, wiping the dust from his pants.

"Yes!" the two cheered as one before sharing a high-five.

Marco smiled, glad to see the two getting along... for now at least. "Well I'm glad you two are having fun, just please try and be careful, okay. Not everyone is alright with being 'sneak attacked'."

"We will!" the girls promised, hiding their crossed fingers behind their backs.

"Okay then, I better get back to Star," the hooded teen said, about to run off again when Daisy suddenly interrupted him with a panicked shout.

"Wait, Big Brother! We need to ask you something!" the cutesy girl screamed.

The boy paused, turning to her with curiosity. "What is it?"

"Have you seen Edith anywhere?" Daisy asked, worry shining in her bright eyes.

"We've looked everywhere and we can't find her!" Violet added, looking equally as distraught.

Marco stared sadly down at the girls for a second before shaking his head. "Nope, sorry girls, I haven't."

The two's faces fell even more and the boy instantly added, "Uh, but don't worry I'm sure you'll find her. She's probably just hiding somewhere, she'll turn up soon."

Daisy and Violet gave him hopeful looks, their eyes lighting up some in joy. "You really think so?" the creepy child asked.

Marco nodded confidently, shooting them a comforting smile. "I'm positive! And hey it's almost like playing a game of hide and seek, right?"

"Yeah, you're right!" Daisy cheered, back to her vibrant self as she hopped up and down. "In that case, we better get back to looking for her!"

"Yeah, let's do it!" Violet shouted, pumping her fist in the air in excitement. The two ran off down the hall and Marco smiled as he watched them go, calling quickly out to them, "Good luck!"

"Thanks, Big Brother!" the two shouted back, waving to him over their shoulders before disappearing around the corner.

Marco chuckled and shook his head, before suddenly remembering his own task and his eyes widened in panic. "Oh no, Star!" he gasped.

…

Star managed to get her room clean in record time, her wand helping the task along immensely as she summoned an army of cute little cat maids, their furry forms rushing around, fixing and cleaning everything in sight. The blond royal nodded her head in satisfaction as the kittens finished up, her room practically sparkling now. In fact, it probably looked even better than before. "Nice work guys!" she said pleasantly to the cats. She then used her wand to summon them a ball of yarn, saying, "Here. You guys earned it."

The kitten maids all meowed in pleasure as they played amongst themselves, Star walking around her room and double-checking their work just to be sure. But there was not a spot of dust or clutter anywhere and the girl finally let out a deep sigh, wiping her brow in satisfaction with her free hand. "Thank goodness. At least that's one less thing to worry about," she commented to herself, tapping her wand against her open palm, the nervousness starting to resurface some again.

Just then, the window to her room busted open as a harsh breeze blew into the room, catching Star off guard and causing the kittens to all rear back in concern. The girl put up a hand to shield her face from the viscous force of the wind, trying to crack an eye open and see what the source of the draft was, when an ominous cloud of black smoke flew into the room. The cats all yowled in fear as any stray papers or objects were sent flying around the room, the stream of magic smoke circling Star a few times before coming jumping up into the air and landing in front of her. The cloud parted revealing the small form of a cat. The cat had short white fur and translucent wings that fluttered behind her, keeping her always floating in the air. Her tail was at least the length of her full body, maybe even longer, which waved back and forth lazily in mid-air. Her eyes were inhumanely wide, with bright green pupils that seemed to glow with innocence and kindness as she observed the princess up and down. Her tiny paws held a large clipboard and glowing pink pen which almost sparkled with magic.

The wind died instantly the moment Baby appeared, sending the loose objects and papers falling to the ground, Star's room now as trashed as when she started. "Star Butterfly, I presume," Baby said, her voice as cute as her general appearance.

"Uh yes, that's me, Miss Baby," Star said quickly, doing a little curtsey and bowing her head politely. She was glad her voice didn't crack, her nerves still threatening to get the best of her, especially after her initial shock from Baby's entrance.

Baby gave a narrowed gaze around the room before saying in a critical tone, "Hmm, I expected the room to be much neater. Perhaps your busy schedule is taking up too much of your time for such simple things."

Star felt a twinge of anger as she thought bitterly, Only because you messed it up. But she kept the smile plastered on her face. Yep, just as she suspected, this was all a ploy by the MHC, which meant she had to keep her calm and play her part. The future of her Commission and Mewni hung in the balance. Which was why she managed to keep her voice polite and level as she said, "Actually, my maids were just about to get to work cleaning the room, right guys?" She gave them a pleading look and the cat's all reluctantly sighed and dropped the ball of yarn going back to their previous task from before, looking none too happy about it now.

Baby watched the cats silently for a moment, before jotting something down on her clipboard, Star feeling her heart begin to sink. She cleared her throat and said quickly, "Uh sooo, would you like a tour of my room or..."

"Yes that would be acceptable," Baby said, not looking up from her clipboard.

Star tried to keep her calm as she began giving a quick tour of her room, Baby barely paying any attention to anything, only looking up once or twice with a blank expression before going back to scribbling notes down furiously. Star was starting to lose her nerve and wished Marco was here to calm her.

Luckily, just as she finished up the tour, Marco came bursting into the room, panting wildly with sweat dripping down his face as he exclaimed, "Star, I'm back! Sorry, it took me so long I-" But he froze as he spotted the flying cat just over Star's shoulder, fixing him with a critical gaze and he looked over to his girlfriend for help. The blond royal kept her calm as she said in a smooth tone, "Marco, this is Baby." She gestured over to the flying cat who still had yet to blink as her narrowed eyes seemed to be tearing him apart and he continued to stand awkwardly in the doorway. She then gestured over to the hooded teen. "Baby this is my boyfriend and the Monster representative Marco Diaz."

"Uhh, h-hello Miss Baby," Marco said, trying to match his girlfriend's relaxed tone but unable to keep his voice from stuttering some. Star mouthed the word 'bow' to him and he quickly dropped into a late bow, keeping his head submissively down.

"Yes, I've heard a lot about you, Mr. Diaz, was it?" Baby said, her tone unreadable.

Marco stood up at once, nodding as he replied, "Uh yeah. My parents were Rafael and Angela Diaz." He felt a slight boost of pride at that, a bit of his anxiety subsiding.

"Yes, yes the Monster supporters," Baby said, her focus returning to her clipboard, her tiny paw furiously scribbling something down. "I've heard all about them." Something about her tone made Marco feel weary and he cast Star a confused look which she returned but they kept their comments to themselves.

"Now then, if there won't be any other interruptions," Baby continued, her eyes darting up for just a moment to fix the boy with a critical look. "We can officially begin your magic exam, princess."

"Oh, yes, of course," Star said, trying to will down her racing heartbeat. This was it.

"Now then, before we begin, we'll need to clear the room of any distractions," Baby began, looking around at the cat maids pointedly.

"Right," Star said, before unsummoning her spells, making sure to also send the ball of yarn with them for all their hard work and as a little extra thank you for cleaning her room up twice now. Once she was done, she turned to Baby waiting for her next direction.

But Baby's focus switched to Marco, who had finally moved away from the doorway, shutting the door but still standing awkwardly off to the side, looking unsure. "All the distractions," Baby said in a hinting tone and Marco felt his eyes widen. Wait was she asking him to leave? But he was supposed to stay and help Star. She needed him to help keep her calm. What if she failed without him? He couldn't leave but Baby had just given a direct order... well kinda. Baby continued staring at him, waiting for him to go and the boy shifted uncomfortably on his feet. "Uh, well I-I-" he stuttered, unsure how to politely word this.

"Actually Baby," Star spoke up on his behalf, seeing her bestie struggling to speak up for himself. "I was hoping Marco could stay. I need him for... moral support." She flashed him a loving smile, which he returned with a grateful one.

Baby sighed before saying, "Very well, but I'm making a note of this." She quickly wrote something down and Star swallowed back the biting comment hovering on the end of her tongue. Having Marco there wasn't a bad thing, how dare this stupid cat even think that.

"Okay then," she said instead, plastering on another false smile. "I'm ready when you are."

Baby nodded before saying, "First things first, I'll need to ask you a few questions."

Star had been expecting this, her mother warning her she might need to refresh her mind on basic Mewman history and she and Marco had taken extra time to get her ready for this portion of the exam. The blond royal nodded, ready to draw upon the knowledge she had kept tucked away in her brain. "Of course, I'm ready."

"Very well, can you tell me who was the first Mewman to ever wield the wand?" Baby asked, looking down at her notes.

Star replied in one steady breath, "Cosmos the Infinite. They say the wand was gifted to her by the beings of the magic realm because of her pure heart."

"Yes, and was she a member of the Butterfly clan?" Baby questioned while writing down Star's answer.

Star nodded. "Yes, she was."

"And how did the Butterfly clan rise to power?"

"Our Trait," Star replied, looking over to Marco to see him giving her an encouraging thumb's up.

"Which is?"

"The ability to wield the magic wand. Only certain members of the Butterfly clan can channel its power," Star said, feeling more and more confident with every answer. "In anyone else's hands, it's completely useless."

The fairy continued to ask question after question, Star answering every single one with zero hesitation, her study session's paying off well.

Marco, meanwhile, felt his heart swelling with pride for his girlfriend, unable to keep the bright smile off his face. That was until a slithering feeling jumped up his spine and he jumped some in surprise, managing to stifle his scream. Star and Baby didn't notice this, too invested in their quiz and the boy tried to calm his now racing heart. What the heck was that? Marco wondered.

Then there was more shifting only this time on his stomach, the movement on his ticklish belly causing him to laugh out loud. Star and Baby immediately whipped their heads over to him and Marco slapped a hand over his mouth to hold back his giggles as the feeling continued. Star looked concerned as her boyfriend burst out laughing over nothing, while Baby just raised an annoyed eyebrow. Finally, the feeling stopped and he was able to get in a breath of air, his lungs sore from the random tickle attack. "Uh, sorry about that," he said sheepishly, feeling Baby's intense stare on his skin. "I, uh, just thought of a funny joke." He smiled, hoping the cat would buy it.

Baby just rolled her eyes before saying, "Well maybe next time you should leave the room, instead of interrupting me in the middle of a sentence." She put her furry paws on her hips as she fixed him with a scolding glare and the boy looked down at his feet.

"Right, sorry, it won't happen again," he said softly.

"Good, see that it doesn't," Baby replied harshly, before going back to her question taking. Star answering each one but kept casting worried looks over to her boyfriend now.

Marco waited until they got back into a steady rhythm before turning around and pulling open his hoodie to see what was moving around in there, only to see a pair of beady eyes and a forked tongue looking up at him innocently. "Edith?!" he said in a loud whisper. "What are you doing in there?" He quickly reached down and pulled her out from his hoodie, holding her long form in both hands. "You need to get out of here," he continued.

"Marco?"

The boy turned on his feet hiding Edith behind his back, plastering on a smile. "Hmm, yes," he responded far-too-quickly, looking between Mewman and fairy.

"Are you okay?" the blond royal asked.

"Who me, oh I'm just fine, nothing to worry about here," the boy said in a very unconvincing tone, doing a quick thumbs up with his free hand.

"Okay then," Star said reluctantly, before returning her focus on the test.

The boy breathed a sigh of relief, before pulling his hands in front of him again, only to find Edith gone and he gasped in surprise. "What? Where did she go?"

A tiny head popped up on his left shoulder and he nearly jumped in surprise. "Edith," he whispered quietly. "You can't be in here, Star needs to focus. I'm taking you back to Daisy and Violet."

But Edith wasn't listening to any of this for she had just spotted something of interest, a small, furry cat... with a delicious, mouth-watering diamond implanted in its forehead. Edith's small mouth dropped open, drool dripping from her stone fangs as she stared mesmerized at the treat in front of her. She had never eaten a diamond before but they were supposed to be the greatest tasting gem of all time and there was one right in front of her!

Edith was about to slither over and grab it when she was snatched up by the one in red, the one with the very noisy yell, blabbering on about something under his breath as he turned and headed for the exit. But Edith wasn't going to miss this chance, no way. So she began squirming in his grip, easily slipping through his fingers before landing hard on the floor. She was dazed for half a second, before shaking her head and slithering over to her meal, hissing happily.

Just as Marco reached for the doorknob he heard a thump and looked down only to see a small, blue form disappear between his legs. He quickly ran over and snatched Edith off the ground, who hissed in protest.

Meanwhile, Star had just finished answering her last question, Baby nodding as she jotted down a few notes before tapping the pen against the clipboard thoughtfully. "Hmm, it would seem you know your history, Princess Star.”

Star smiled and Marco couldn't help but grin as well, despite the urgency of the situation. But he began to quietly tip-toe away, slowly reaching out for the doorknob.

"Marco!" the boy flinched as his name was called and swerved on his feet, tucking Edith into his hoodie pocket and out of sight.

"Yeah, Star?" he asked, trying to keep his voice even despite his slight panic, knowing Edith could ruin the whole test.

"Where are you going?" the blond royal asked, arching an eyebrow while silently asking him what was going on.

"Oh, just to go check on the food," the boy said, keeping his gaze locked with Star, trying to convey to her that something was wrong and that he'd explain later while his hand reached backward for the knob.

Only for the door to slam open, nearly hitting Marco who stumbled forward in surprise as Kelly, Janna, Ferguson, and Alfonso entered into the room, pulling carts filled to the brim with the Woolett's dishes. The green-haired girl smiled brightly at the three in the room, her face and voice polite and professional as she said cheerfully, "Sorry for the intrusion but we figured you could use some sustenance after you're long trip, Miss Baby."

Baby's eyes widened to unbelievable proportions as she hovered slowly closer to the delicious array of food, clearly holding back her urges as she licked her lips hungrily. Kelly seeing this added, "We prepared all this for you, so help yourself." The Woolett then dropped into a bow, the others doing the same behind her.

"Food!" Baby screamed before disappearing into a cloud of smoke again, which flew past the carts at an inhuman speed, leaving behind only empty plates and crumbs as every bit of food was devoured in an instant. The others all watched flabbergasted at the display and Marco, seizing his opportunity at the distraction, lifted the silver lid off a plate and set Edith onto it, before covering the Gem Feeder completely. There, Marco thought to himself. Now they can take her out of here and no one will ever know.

The plume of darkness finished its meal before jumping next to Star again, Baby appearing a second later, licking her paw greedily. "More please," she said simply.

Kelly recovered from her shock as a look of anger flashed across her face, she had just spent the better part of the morning making all that and not only had Baby not had the decency to acknowledge her but she then demanded even more from her! Marco noticed this look and thinking quickly said, "Yes, I'm sure Kelly wouldn't mind making you something else to eat, Miss Baby. Right Kelly?" He turned to the girl with a pleading look, silently begging her to help them out.

Kelly stared at the boy for a moment before sighing and replying with forced cheer, "Of course not, I'll just go do that right now." She plastered on a fake smile which looked more like she was grimacing but Baby didn't seem to notice nor care as she looked through the notes written on her clipboard. The Woolett turned and exited the room, the others pushing the empty carts behind her, but not before shooting the hooded teen a look that said, You owe me for this. Marco smiled and gave her a thumbs-up, letting her know he would indeed pay her back for her help. With that, the door closed leaving the three of them alone once again.

"Well now that that's out of the way," Baby said, gaining the two teens' attention back. "It's time to see just how far you've come in your training, Princess Star." The fairy cat snapped her fingers and a second later a dummy appeared in the center of the room, a crudely drawn face scribbled onto it, its body made of a faded burlap sack which was leaking straw and two sticks jammed into the sides of it to represent arms.

Star nodded, a look of determination on her face, her hand squeezing the wand tightly in anticipation. This was it, she thought, trying to keep her calm.

"Please, show me you're best Narwhal Blast, princess," Baby said, starting off easy but watching the girl closely none the less.

Star smiled at the easy spell. That was one of her specialties. She waved the wand in a circle before holding it straight out shouting, "Mega Narwhal Blast!" The reaction was instant as a series of aquatic mammals were sent flying around her room, hitting the dummy and crushing it instantly.

"Hmm, very good," Baby said with a nod, jotting down a quick note, before looking back up at the royal teen. "Double rainboom."

There was a puff of smoke and the dummy was standing once more, waiting for the next attack. Star did a twirl, sparks of lightning forming around her wand before she held it out, and yelled the appropriate chant, "Double Rainboom Devastation!" Two streaks of rainbows shot out of the wand, twisting around each other before colliding with the dummy, exploding with a massive bang that caused Star's walls to rattle.

Marco covered his ears from the loud sound but quickly started clapping at the amazing display. There was nothing left of the scarecrow this time, only a singed pile of ash and broken tile from the harsh impact. Baby barely acknowledged this one, writing something down, before snapping her fingers and restoring the dummy to its former glory. "Honeybee Tornado Swarm."

That was a bit harder but Star, feeling more confident, nodded, and said, "No problem." She swiped her wand through the air while shouting, "Honeybee Tornado Swarm."

Marco watched mesmerized as Star's spells devastated the target, again and again, Star casting each spell with conviction and power, any sign of anxiety gone from her sweet face. Now that the whole Edith fiasco was over, Marco could just sit back, relax, and watch his girlfriend pass her test with flying colors. He sat down on the floor, a small grin on his face as he watched Star expertly cast each requested spell.

"Cupcake Blast!"

"Winterstorm Hyperblow!"

"Cotten Candy Devastation Blast!"

That was until he spotted a small blue form slithering across the floor slowly making its way over to the two and more importantly, into the line of fire from Star's spells. Marco jumped to his feet, managing to suppress his surprised squeak as he watched Edith getting closer and closer to Star's destruction. How did she even get back in here? Marco wondered to himself, before shaking his head free of the unimportant thought. It doesn't matter right now, I gotta focus on saving Edith.

Just as Edith slithered into the line of fire, Star sucking in a breath as she prepared another spell, Marco jumped in front of her shouting, "Wait!"

Star doubled back in surprise, nearly dropping the wand in her fright, while Baby just glared angrily down at the boy. "Mr. Diaz, what did I tell you before about interrupting us during-"

"Yeah, I know," the boy interrupted, trying to quickly think of an excuse. "I was just thinking, uhhh, that this is too easy. M-Maybe it would be better if Star attacked a... moving target."

Star gave the boy a confused look, while Baby thoughtfully rubbed her furry chin with her paws, thinking over the boy's idea. "What are you doing?" the blond royal whispered, quietly.

"I'll explain later," the boy replied softly. He couldn't risk distracting Star. She needed to focus on the test, he could handle the rest.

"Hmm, you have a point," Baby said thoughtfully, clearly liking the idea. "Would that be alright with you, Princess Star."

Star nodded, before replying, "Sure, I can handle that." Though she cast another quizzical look to her bestie.

"Very well," Baby said, before snapping her fingers, before the dummy came to life, bouncing around the room in a random pattern but moving slowly enough he was easy to aim at. "Please continue the spell as requested."

Star nodded, waiting for Marco to move out of the way before sucking in another breath, making sure to keep steady aim on the target now as it hopped around the room. "Bacon Kitty Hawaiian Nightmare!" she screamed, before destroying the moving scarecrow in an instant with the toughest spell yet.

Marco let out a sigh of relief, before looking quickly around for the slippery snake, wondering where she could have gotten off to now. When he spotted her he nearly screamed, she was slowly making her way up Star's lamp, doing loops around its thin frame, which was right next to Baby. The small cat seemed none the wiser to the snake, positioning itself behind her, even as it leaned over, opening his mouth wide as it got closer and closer to the blue diamond on the fairy's head. Marco rushed over as quietly but quickly as he could, trying to leave a wide berth so he wouldn't be noticed by the other two, before snatching up Edith at the last second, the snake mere seconds away from devouring Baby's crystal.

Baby turned, giving the boy a quizzical look but he just smiled and flicked on the lamp saying nervously, "Thought you could use some light."

"Yes, thank you," Baby muttered but the suspicion in her eyes was clear.

Marco felt panic seize his chest but somehow managed to keep a straight face as he said, "No problem." He then turned around to glare at the naughty snake, whispering harshly, "Edith, what are you doing? Do you want Star to fail her test?!" But Edith just flicked her tongue in response.

Baby looked over to Star who was starting to pant now from exertion, the numerous spells starting to wear on her. She wasn't used to casting this many in a row, even while training she had paced herself and she could feel her magical energy beginning to dwindle. Hopefully, they would be done soon.

"Your boyfriend is very strange," Baby commented.

Star, looked over to her boyfriend, who had his back to them, whispering something under his breath like he was talking to someone and the blond royal felt her worry increase. Something was clearly wrong and whatever it was Marco was keeping it to himself, which made Star even more unnerved. Marco told her everything, no secret ever kept between the two of them but if he was keeping whatever it was to himself on today of all days then it couldn't be good. Still, she would just have to trust her boyfriend to handle whatever it was and focus on her problems. She had a test to pass, after all.

So not knowing what else to say, Star simply shrugged and replied, "Thank you." Baby seemed surprised by the answer but Star just wanted to get this test over with so she could rest, not to mention figure out what was going on with her bestie, so she quickly added, "I'm ready for the next spell."

"Are you sure, princess," Baby said, her keen eyes focusing in on the bags under the blond's eyes and the heaviness to her limbs. "You can rest for a minute, don't want to overdo it."

Star could tell by the fairy's tone this was less about Baby's concern for her well-being and more of an insult. She was clearly testing Star to see how she'd react, see if she was as weak as everyone said she was and Star felt a fire in belly at the thought, wanting nothing more than to prove this stupid cat wrong.

"No, I'm fine, let's keep going," Star said, holding her head up high to show Baby she wasn't backing down.

"Very well," Baby said, her tone suddenly mischievous, the slightest hint of a smirk on her face and Star knew instantly what was coming next, thinking worriedly to herself, Oh no. "If you're so confident why don't we try a harder one, how about..." Baby paused pretending to think it over, before saying, "Warnicorn Stampede?"

Star felt her heart drop and Marco turned around with panic in his eyes, having heard the name of the absolute toughest spell in the spellbook. Edith was forgotten as he watched Star closely, her body tensing up some and her eyes showing the slightest hint of fear in them. Baby seemed to notice this as she added in a superior tone, "You have the learned that spell, correct?"

Star nodded quickly, trying to hide her nervousness behind an iron mask as she replied, "Of course."

"Then you should have no problem casting it for me," Baby said, her sharp gaze suddenly feeling like it was trying to dig into Star's soul and she resisted the urge to glare at the instructor.

"No, none at all, I'm happy to do it," Star said with a forced grin.

"Good, then show me," Baby said, snapping her fingers again as the dummy appeared in the center of the room, still and unmoving this time.

Star looked over to Marco for encouragement and he happily obliged, giving her a small nod and a thumbs up, the brightest, most positive smile he had in his arsenal stretched across his face as he mouthed the words, You got this. This alone seemed to relax Star down, just knowing her Marco was there supporting her giving her the confidence needed to perform the spell. She took in a deep breath and closed her eyes, pushing out all thoughts except that of Marco, focusing on the image of his smiling face to relax her as she crossed her arms in front of her chest.

She then began to perform the Incantation Dance, her movements swift, smooth, and precise as she turned and swayed through each step of the complicated spell. She knew this spell by heart, she had practiced it dozens of times before and had even successfully pulled it off not even an hour ago, Marco was right, she had this completely under control. And as Star continued with her graceful dance, a blissful smile formed on her face as she felt the magic gathering around her, relaxing her aching muscles and giving her much-needed energy.

While this was going on, Marco watched mesmerized for a second before feeling Edith squirming around in his hand and he looked down just in time to see her slide out of his grip, falling toward the floor. The hooded teen quickly snatched her up out of mid-air, but she continued to slither around in his hands, making it impossible for him to get a good grip as she slipped through his fingers. His hands fumbled to catch the slippery snake as Edith merely bounced around in his hands, unaware of the painful drop that waited below her, her only goal in sight being that of the delicious crystal.

Finally, after much trial and error, the boy managed to get a good grip on Edith, walking swiftly over to Star's closet and setting her carefully inside before closing the door as quietly as possible. But thankfully, the sound was muffled by Star's loud shout.

"Warnicorn Stampede!"

The boy leaned heavily against the door as he watched a dozen or so angry looking unicorns appear around Star, raging around the room as they galloped past the dummy, crushing it underneath their thick hoof prints. Star let out a small cheer of joy at her success, turning to Marco with a smile of victory and the boy gave her a tired thumbs up in response.

Baby, however, noticed the boy lingering by the door and asked accusingly, "What are you doing now, Marco Diaz?" The small cat put her paws on her hips for emphasis.

Marco froze up for a second as he struggled to think up some sort of answer, his mouth opening and closing a few times as he struggled for words, looking over to his girlfriend for help. But all Star could do was shrug, looking just as lost on him and he finally replied, "I was, uh, afraid there might be a... draft."

"From the closet?" Baby said, raising a suspicious eyebrow.

"Well, I mean, you never know," Marco said with a nervous grin.

Star, seeing that a distraction was needed, quickly spoke up, saying, "So, Miss Baby, how did I do?"

This seemed to work though, as Baby returned her focus back on her job, humming to herself as she flipped through the clipboard and her notes, trying to compile them together into a grade. Star cast Marco a quick glance, the two both looking equally relieved they hadn't been caught, even though Star was still lost on what exactly was going on. That could have been a disaster. Thankfully, they had avoided anything major going wrong.

"Well, for the most part, I would say you're doing quite well," Baby said finally and Star seemed to visibly relax at that. "There are still some areas that could use some improvement but overall I think your magic training is coming along nicely."

"Oh, that's great to hear," Star breathed out, placing a hand over her heart. She had done it. She had passed the test and now everything would be-

"However, there is still one more task I'd like you to complete for me," Baby said, interrupting Star's moment of victory as fear clenched the girl's chest.

"W-What?" the blond royal whispered, caught off guard by this change of events. There was more? But she had just performed one of the hardest spells in the book flawlessly, what else could Baby possibly have her do that was more difficult than that? She had studied every spell, had trained her mind, body, and spirit for this test, and yet nothing could prepare her for what happened next.

With a simple snap of Baby's fingers, a pedestal appeared in the center of the room, a large, red apple set on top of it. "I'd like you to please, bring me that apple."

"Wait, seriously?!" Star exclaimed, blurting it out without thinking, too shell-shocked to make sense of anything.

Baby's eyes narrowed just an inch as she said, "You do know the proper spell for that, don't you?"

"U-Uh, of course," Star said, recovering some from her bafflement as she responded to the question being asked, racking her brain for the answer. "That would be Levitato." Otherwise known as one of the easiest spells in the whole book. Why would Baby be testing her on something as simple as that?

Baby nodded, before saying, "Then please, whenever you're ready." The small cat held out a hand in wait, keeping her gaze focused on Star, watching her every move closely. The blond royal forced herself to focus as she directed her attention onto the apple, holding her wand out as she got ready to perform the spell, waiting patiently for the energy to gather.

Marco, still keeping himself pressed against the door, couldn't help but lean forward some, intrigued by the conversation between his girlfriend and her instructor, his mouth hanging slightly open as his head spun with questions. There was more to the test? Was this some sort of bonus round or something, like in one of those video games Tom had shown him? Or was this another test in itself? The task seemed simple enough, maybe there was something he was missing?

"Hey, Marco, what's up?" a voice suddenly said beside him and turned to see Janna in bat form fly over and perch on his shoulder. "How's the test going?"

"Okay, I guess," Marco said via whisper, not wanting to distract Star to any degree. "But what are you doing here?"

"Oh the others asked me to see how things were going, so here I am," Janna replied, spreading her wings wide.

"Well we have a slight problem, Janna," Marco muttered, trying not to grimace as he remembered the determined reptile just on the other side of this door.

"I'll say, that cat's got a serious eating problem," Bat-Jan remarked sarcastically.

"No, I mean another problem. Your pet snake is in here and keeps trying to attack Baby."

"What?" Janna said in disbelief. "Edith is completely harmless, what possible reason would she have to-" That's when the creepy teen spotted the gemstone on the cat's head. "Ooohh, okay, that explains it. She's after the diamond." Janna said, nodding her head.

"Wait, are you serious?" Marco said in a raised whisper.

"Yep, diamond's are basically irresistible to Gem Feeders," Janna replied, matter-of-factly.

"Well, at least she can't cause any more trouble," Marco said, leaning back against the door.

"Uh, I wouldn't be too sure of that," Janna said and Marco gave his friend a confused look before she gestured to up ahead with her wing. Marco gasped, nearly falling over as he saw Edith slithering across the smooth tile.

"How did she get out?!" Marco exclaimed, barely keeping his voice low enough Star and Baby wouldn't hear.

"Edith is very sneaky," Janna answered simply.

"Yeah, I noticed," the hooded teen said, before adding hastily, "Now come on, help me catch her before she messes Star up."

The blond was breathing slowly and steadily, in and out, in and out, letting the magic gather trying to ignore the impatient tapping of Baby's pen on the clipboard. She tried to push out all distractions again, but a loud shuffling behind her, drew her out of her concentration and she took a quick glance over her shoulder to see what was going on, her wand still held out and ready. She nearly dropped said wand though as she saw Marco dive forward, with Janna perched on her shoulder, scooping up Edith off the ground, who hissed unhappily. Baby seeing Star's shocked reaction and hearing the small noise behind her started to turn and Star quickly tried to signal to Marco to do something, waving her hands in the air.

Marco spotted this and seeing Baby starting to turn, he threw Edith right over Baby's head and Star sucked in a breath at the unexpected action. But Janna was already ready for this as she zoomed off Marco's shoulder, swooping over and snatching the snake up in her claws without the cat noticing. Star could only watch in disbelief as Janna winked over at her and then flew out the window just as Baby turned back around. The blond royal stared dumbly out the window for a few seconds, her mouth hanging open before she shot her boyfriend a questioning look. What the heck was that about?! Her eyes asked and the boy gave her a sheepish grin.

Baby watched the short exchange between the two before marking something down on her clipboard. She looked up from it, giving the hooded teen a harsh frown, "Is there something you wanted to say, Mr. Diaz?"

Marco shook his head, before saying quickly, "Uh no, ma'am. I was just-"

"Um, Miss Baby," Star spoke up, trying to save her boyfriend from further scolding, hoping to draw the cat's attention back onto her. "I'm ready to perform the spell."

"Oh, that won't be necessary," Baby said.

Star's eyes widened in surprise. "W-What?!" the blond royal muttered in confusion. "But you asked me to-"

Baby held up a silencing paw. "I've seen all I needed to see," Baby replied simply, her tone cordial and chipper but Star could hear the condescension layered just beneath, which sent Star's nerves over the edge.

"But I didn't do it yet," Star tried, her voice hopeless and desperate as the familiar tendrils of fear claimed her. She turned to get back into position again. "If you'd just let me-"

"I'm not interested, princess," Baby retorted immediately. "The test is over, I'm afraid. I've made my decision."

Star tried to swallow back the creeping doubt as she asked nervously, "Then, h-how did I do?" There was a slight quiver in her voice as she held the wand up to her mouth in anxious anticipation. Marco too held his breath, crossing his fingers behind his back, both teens hoping for the best, waiting for Baby to say...

"You failed." Those two simple words shattered Star, the girl stumbling back in surprise as her head spun. Marco gasped in surprise, his eyes going wide as he struggled to comprehend that statement, unable to believe his girlfriend had actually failed. Star felt her knees go weak and had to sit down on her bed to keep herself from falling over as she stared blankly ahead. "I-I failed," the girl mumbled as the reality of the situation settled over her. How was that possible? After everything she had done, after all the work she had put into it. She had still failed. She was a failure of a princess and a Butterfly. What would Mewni think of her now?

Marco, seeing the devastated look on his bestie's face, decided to take matters into his own hands and attempt to change the fairy's mind. He sucked in a deep breath, before asking in the most convincing, friendly tone he could, "There has to be some mistake. If you'd just give Star another chance, I'm sure she could do the spell no problem."

"Oh, I'm sure she could too," Baby said. "But unfortunately, that's not why she failed." Her gaze narrowed in on the hooded teen, shooting him a scolding glare as she stabbed her pen in his direction, adding harshly, "The reason she failed was because of you, Mr. Diaz."

Marco was taken aback, putting a hand slowly to his chest as he replied, "M-Me." He swallowed guiltily, shrinking some into himself, before saying in a soft, defensive tone, "But I was just trying to help."

"That may be, but it's clear to me that all you are is a distraction to Star," Baby continued, holding nothing back as she voiced her true thoughts aloud, openly and cruelly criticizing Marco, uncaring of the hurt that flashed across the boy's face with every word. "She can't go more than a few seconds without staring at you and it's clear she can't focus on her tasks with you around. It's obvious to me that Star would be much farther along in her training if not for 'distractions' getting in the way of her progress."

Marco hung his head in shame, feeling guilt and remorse flowing through him in painful waves, tears forming in his shaky vision. He did his best to fight back the negative thoughts but it was like Baby had just opened a dam of emotions that he had spent months trying to rid himself of, a new fear threatening to thwart all the progress he had made. It was as if Baby had come and just reset him back to the old days when he lived in constant shame and dread under Toffee's cruel rule.

Star seeing how the fairy's words were affecting her tenderhearted boyfriend, felt something inside her snap, temporarily blacking out as all the pent up anger consumed her very being, painting her heart dark for a fleeting moment. Without even realizing it, Star was storming over to Baby, getting right up in her furry face as she shouted aggressively, "Don't ever say that about Marco!"

Baby was taken aback by this, fluttering back to put some distance between her and Star but the girl wouldn't be thwarted, taking a step forward into Baby's personal space once more. "Marco is not a distraction! If anything he's the whole reason I can do magic in the first place!"

Marco's mouth dropping open as his eyes flashed with concern for his friend, shaking his head slowly to try and tell her to stop. But the girl didn't see her boyfriend, all she saw was red, all of her anger directed solely at Baby for daring to insult her Marco. "He's helped me in more ways than I can count and that includes with magic! He makes me a better person and inspires me to do more! The only reason I was even able to do this stupid test at all is because of him and instead of blaming him for stuff you should be down on your knees thanking him because I wouldn't have gotten this far without him!"

"Star," Marco spoke up, his voice a quiet squeak as he tried feebly to gain his girlfriend's attention, trying to keep her from saying something she would regret... any more than she already had.

But Star couldn't be stopped, not until she had finished saying her piece, as she yelled at the top of her lungs in the most violent, enraged tone she could muster. "And if that's how you really feel then you can just... leave!"

All at once, the resentment and rage vanished from Star, leaving her feeling shaky and empty, panting as she stared into Baby's disturbed eyes. The fairy looked downright terrified, her eyes so wide it seemed she was staring at death itself and Star felt her heart clench as she realized what she had just done. She turned to Marco, casting him a concerned, fearful glance, only to find his face the picture of disbelief. She swallowed hard before turning back to Baby, who's horrified face had morphed into an angry scowl.

"U-Uh, um, Baby, I... I..." Star whispered, trying to think of some way to backtrack, to save herself from her previous actions. She couldn't have just ruined everything for herself... could she have? There had to be some way to fix this.

But as Star's brain struggled to come up with a way out of the mess she had made, it seemed she was already too late as Baby said in a monotone voice, "Very well then." And in the blink of an eye, she was gone, exiting out the window's of Star's room in a puff of black smoke, sending papers and other things scattering about the room at the abrupt action but Star was too numb to notice or care. Instead, she just stared lost out the window, unable to believe what had just happened.

She had just failed her test.

The blond royal felt her knees go weak again and she slowly backed over to her bed, plopping down on it hard as she stared forward in bewilderment. "I-I can't believe I just did that," she muttered to no one in particular, letting the sentence be drowned in the emptiness around and inside of her. "I just yelled at Baby," she continued, the confirmation feeling like acid on her tongue. But none moreso than the words that followed. "I-I just failed my test."

Marco watched his girlfriend closely, feeling his heart clench at the brokenness he saw on her face. She looked devastated and he was partially to blame for that. He had helped contribute to her failure, without even meaning to. "I'm sorry, Star," he said with a long sigh. Star looked up at him with confusion and he added apologetically, "You only failed because of me." The guilt threatened to eat him whole as he swallowed down the lump in his throat.

"What?! No, Marco, don't say that!" Star shouted at once, shooting him a panicked look. "This isn't your fault! It's mine." She put a hand to her chest for emphasis, giving him what she hoped was a comforting look. "I should have known better than to yell at Baby like that but when she said all those things..." Star shook her head, her eyes flashing with anger for just a second. "I just... lost it."

"Yeah, but," Marco muttered quietly, avoiding Star's eyes as he stared guiltily down at his shoes. "That wouldn't have happened if I hadn't-"

"Marco," Star said firmly, finally capturing Marco's attention as he looked up and locked eyes with her. She saw the tenseness in his body and gestured him closer. "Come here."

The boy obeyed, slowly walking over to his girlfriend, before standing nervously over her as she looked up at him with starry-eyed vision. "You did nothing wrong. I meant what I said to Baby, even if I was angry at the time. Every word."

"Really?" Marco muttered and Star gently placed her hands on his cheeks, causing his suns to spin.

"Absolutely! Marco before I met you, I could barely handle a Narwhal Blast," Star said, her voice sweet and light and full of affection for her dear bestie. This caused Marco to smile and this encouraged Star to continue. "And then you came along and inspired me! You made me want to be a better me and you made me feel confident, both in my magic... and in myself." That's why I love you, Star added in her head, her cheeks flushing slightly at the thought. But she forced the thought down before she got too flustered, as she finished with a bright grin, "I'd be lost without out."

Marco gave Star a goofy, puppy-dog grin as his shimmering eyes flooded with tears, unable to contain his joy at hearing those words from his girlfriend. He sniffed, wiping the tears from his eyes with the back of his sleeve, Star giggling at how adorable he looked in that moment. "I'd be lost without you, too," the boy said, his voice choked up with emotions.

Star felt her heart melt at the sight of her cute boyfriend, wrapping her arms around his neck and bringing him closer to her, so their noses could touch. She stared deeply into his gorgeous chocolate brown eyes, whispering breathlessly, "Thank goodness that's never gonna happen."

Marco nodded, causing their noses to rub up against one another and sending tingles down each others' spines. "Yeah," he agreed, feeling like his heart might explode from the rush of wonderful emotions in his chest. However, a worrying thought crossed his mind as he asked nervously, "But what are we gonna do now? What if the MHC shuts down our commission?"

"Then we'll deal with it together. Like we always do," Star replied, no longer fearing the future. Not so long as she had her Marco here in her arms. As long as they had each other than there was nothing they couldn't fix. "And you know what," the blond royal added, still staring unblinkingly into endless brown orbs.

"What?" the boy asked, his eyes sparkling with childlike curiosity that set Star's very being ablaze.

"I don't regret what I said," the girl explained. "No one talks to my Marco like that."

Marco smiled brightly at that and thanked the girl with a gentle kiss. Star's eyes widened as their lips met, before sliding closed, enjoying the moment. It was pretty rare for Marco to initiate the kisses but boy was he good at it. His lips moved so expertly against her own, leading her into blissful wonderment while still keeping her in the moment, his hands lightly squeezing her sides as he deepened the affectionate kiss. Their cheekmarks lit up bright white, Star's wand laying next to her on the bed, doing the same as it had done many times before.

Only this time, there was another reaction from within the room.

The apple, which lay forgotten in the middle of Star's room, started to glow. White magic flowed around the fruit's form, causing it to shudder and quake before splitting open. The two perfect halves of the apple lay still for a second before the seeds were soon covered with the same white magic from before, small roots soon growing from the seeds. Those roots sprouted out limbs, which turned into a thick trunk, each tangle of branches looping around each other in a hypnotic dance, as more and more branches and roots sprouted out from the steadily growing tree. The tree soon filled at least a quarter of Star's room, spreading out as much as it possibly could, still glowing with magic the whole time.

Its branches were pink and red, the top of the tree making a heart shape. One of the long branches reached out over the two oblivious teen's heads, still too lost in their kiss to notice the miraculous sight. Finally, though an apple formed at the end of said branch, before cutting itself loose and dropping down toward the two... hitting Marco directly on the head.

"Ow!" the hooded teen said with a cry of pain, breaking off the kiss as he put a hand to the top of his aching head. He hissed in agony, his eyes scrunching up as he rubbed at the sore spot. "What the heck was that?!" he asked in confusion, looking down at whatever it was that had just injured him, Star following his gaze.

But their eyes both widened in surprise as they stared at the juicy apple, Star muttering, "Wha?" before the couple looked over at their unknowing creation. The blond royal jumped in surprise seeing the large tree now taking up space in her room, while Marco's eyes filled with bafflement, clearly lost on what he was staring at.

"Um, Star, why is there a tree in your room?" the boy asked naively.

Star just shook her head though, replying in an equally stunned tone, "I have no idea." But finally, she spotted the source of the large plant, her pupils shrinking as she stared at the apple core. "But, I-I think I did this somehow."

Marco turned to her with surprise, his eyes widening with both joy and confusion, "So you did magic without knowing it? Just like back in the graveyard."

"I guess," Star said with a shrug. She didn't quite understand it herself. She hadn't been even thinking about the apple, her focus and attention on Marco. Was the magic seriously acting on its own again? And if it was, why did that keep happening? It was always so random and unpredictable. She should probably have a talk with her mom about that later.

"Actually, you both played a part in it," a voice said beside them and the two screamed in surprise as they turned to see Baby snacking on the fallen apple, watching them closely from her perch on Star's bedpost.

"Baby?" Star said in disbelief.

"What are you doing back here?" Marco asked at the same time.

"Oh I was just observing the final part of your test," Baby replied as if the answer should be obvious.

"Wait, final part?" Star repeated dumbly as she dared herself to hope that all was not lost.

"But I thought she failed," Marco added, still looking lost, his eyebrows scrunching together cutely.

Baby shook her head. "That was all part of the test, I wanted to see how Princess Star would react to negative emotions and feelings," Baby explained simply, her voice light and bubbly.

"So wait, you insulted Marco to see how I would react!" Star shouted, feeling another quick flash of anger.

"Yes, and do forgive me for my behavior earlier, Mr. Diaz. It was necessary for the test," Baby replied.

"Uh, sure," Marco said, surprised by the sincerity in Baby's voice now. It was like he was talking to a whole different person- or cat- or whatever.

"But yes, there were three parts that I was told to test you on," Baby continued, a kind smile on her face now. "The first was to test your knowledge on the wand and it's history which you passed. The second was to test your actual ability with the wand, which you did exceptionally on. And the third was to see how your bond with Marco is affecting your magic growth."

"Wait, my bond with Marco, what do you mean?" Star asked.

Baby paused, before asking, "Has Glossaryk not covered this subject with you?" Star and Marco shared a look, their cheeks blushing slightly, the fairy's keen eyes watching the exchange closely. "I see," was all she said, before pausing to think of the best way to explain this to the two teens. "Well to put it quite simply, your feelings for one another can have an effect on your magic and on each other."

Star gasped, shooting Marco a disbelieving look which he returned, before the blond royal exclaimed, "Seriously?!"

Baby nodded. "Yes, your magic is tied very closely to your emotions, so your feelings can affect the strength of your magic and in some cases can even act on those feelings without a need to be cast or summoned." The cat turned to the tree with a knowing look. "And from the looks of it, I'd say you and Marco have a very strong bond indeed."

"Soooo, what you're saying is, I helped make that?" Marco asked, pointing numbly up at the tree that towered over them.

"Somewhat, yes," Baby answered, clearly pondering it some herself. "But it is a bit more complicated than that."

"So then, is there a way for me to control that power?" Star asked, hoping to find some way to use this ability to her advantage. If she let it go unchecked who knew what would happen. "Cause right now it's just kinda random if it works or not."

"Eventually yes. But that will take time to master. For now, the best thing you can do is to stay together and see how your bond grows with time. The closer you two are, the stronger your magic will be." The cat grabbed each of their hands, before guiding them together, the two curling their fingers around the others warm palm before sharing a loving smile, their cheeks pooling with blood.

"Thanks, Baby," Star said, her eyes never leaving Marco's. "We'll keep that in mind."

"Good to hear," the cat fairy said cheerfully. "I'll just be on my way, then. Farewell, Princess Star. Marco Diaz." She gave a quick nod to the two teens before turning to leave, only for Star to call out to her.

"Wait, I have one last question for you!" Star shouted, stretching out a hand in the cat's direction.

Baby turned to her with wide, surprised eyes which gently softened as she waited patiently to hear the girl's question. There was something that was bothering her about this whole thing, why would the MHC care about her relationship with Marco? Especially if it was all a scheme to take down her commission. It just didn't make sense. Had she been wrong this whole time? "Whose idea was it to test me on my relationship with Marco?" she asked, her eyebrows scrunching together. Other than her mom she couldn't think of anyone who would even care about this. Maybe she had set up the last bit of the test? She was an active member, after all.

Baby gave the girl an apologetic smile, "I'm sorry, princess. But I'm not at liberty to say, I'm afraid that's top-secret information."

Star let out a sigh before muttering, "Figures." It was definitely her mom. It had to be. But she pushed down her annoyance as she gave Baby a lighthearted grin, saying politely, "Well, thanks anyway, Miss Baby."

"Just Baby is fine," the cat said with a wink.

Then, just like before Baby vanished into a cloud of smoke, which blasted through Star's room at a breakneck speed. It swirled around Star and Marco a few times before heading for the window it had come in through.

At that exact moment, though, the door to Star's room opened, Kelly walking in briskly with a tray of delectable goodies in her hands, Alfonso, Ferguson, and Janna following behind her. "Okay, get it while it's hot-" the hairy teen started to say, only to stop mid-step as she looked over at the swirling cloud of smoke. However, the smoke cloud quickly altered course, zipping by the tray and causing Kelly's hair to blow back wildly. In a second, everything on the plate was completely gone, not even a crumb left behind as the cloud of smoke returned to its original path and flew out the window, which slammed shut on its own.

For a few seconds, no one said anything, standing there stunned as the room settled down from the latest windstorm, Star room now messy than when she began this whole fiasco. Finally, it was Kelly who broke the long stretch of silence, groaning in annoyance as she shouted angrily, "Seriously, still no thank you! Just gonna eat and run." She let out a scoff, as she smoothed out her messy hair. "Ungrateful."

"Kelly, you're a waitress, how are you not used to that by now?" Janna asked sarcastically, Edith resting happily on her shoulder.

"Doesn't make it okay!" Kelly replied sharply, crossing her arms in front of her chest, while Tad gave her a comforting pat on the head.

"I'm sure it was delicious, babe. How could anyone not love your food," her boyfriend praised, lovingly.

"Thanks, Tad," Kelly said with a sigh.

"So how did the test go?" Janna asked, scratching Edith under the chin and shooting the two teens a knowing look.

Star shrugged. "I think I passed... somehow," the girl replied honestly. "It was kinda all a blur."

"You did amazing, Star!" Marco said, putting a hand on his girlfriend's shoulder.

"So did you! I couldn't have done it without you, Marco," Star said giving him a loving look.

"Hey, what are besties for?" the boy said, with a playful grin.

Star giggled at that, before giving him a quick peck on the cheek. "You're the best bestie a girl could ever have," she whispered lovingly to him.

"Sooo," Janna spoke up, eying the massive shrub taking up a large section of the girl's room. "You wanna explain what's with the giant tree in your room?"

Star and Marco shared a look, their cheeks flushing somewhat as the memory of how the tree had been created rushed back to them. "Ohh... it was just... part of the test," Star muttered shyly, sharing a knowing smile with her boyfriend.

"Well, fill us in on the details later, right now I could go for some grub," Ferguson said, rubbing his rumbling stomach and Alfonso nodding in agreement.

Star and Marco laughed, the former saying, "Oh man, sounds great! I'm starving."

"And on the way, we can give this little troublemaker back to Daisy and Violet," the hooded teen added, giving Edith a scolding glare while scratching her underneath the chin at the same time.

"Alright! How about it Kelly, you up for one more round of cooking?" Ferguson shouted, pointing dramatically over to the girl.

"Not happening," Kelly deadpanned, her body sagging with exhaustion as she rubbed her tired eyes with the palms of her hands.

Marco put a hand on his friend's shoulder before saying, "Don't worry, Kelly. Star and I can make some of our famous Super Awesome Nachos."

"Yep, it's the least we can do after everything you did for us, today," Star added sweetly.

Kelly gave her friends a grateful smile. "Don't mention it. Happy to help out my friends." She paused though before adding hintingly, "So long as my friends are ready to return the favor."

Marco and Star nodded, catching on to her unspoken request. "You're on," Star replied.

"Ready to help you win this year's baking competition for sure!" Marco shouted, pumping a fist in the air.

"Good to hear," Kelly said with a curt nod.

"So what are you planning on making, Kells?" Star asked as the group all exited the room together, leaving the messy, unorganized room to the work of the maids, the friends ready to celebrate their victory and plan for their next one.

"Glad you asked..." the hairy girl began, with a sly grin on her face.

…

"Star's magic progression is coming along nicely," Baby began her report while munching greedily on a snooker's bar at the same time, speaking in between bites of food. "She's already mastered some of the toughest spells in the Book of Spells, with no help from Glossaryk I might add." The fairy finished up the bar before tossing the wrapper aside and starting on a new one. "At the rate her magic is growing she will exceed standards and full mastery of her Trait within a year or two."

Baby quickly downed the bar of chocolate, chewing noisily before swallowing and continuing, "Her emotional state and confidence level, which showed concern beforehand also seem to be leveling out thanks to the efforts of Marco Diaz and the rest of her friends. Although she does show issues with temperament and judgment where her friends are involved, particularly that of Marco Diaz." The fairy shuddered as she remembered the pure rage and hate on Star's face after merely insulting the hooded teen. Heaven help the unlucky soul who had to face the protective wrath of that girl.

Baby shook her head clear of this thought though as she carried on with her report, picking up yet another candy bar and throwing the previous wrapper onto the growing pile. "As for the nature of the princess's relationship with the Diaz boy... well, I haven't seen a bond like theirs in a long time. And the pure magic that grows from their love is... quite astounding. With time, it could be a very valuable tool indeed."

Baby finally finished with her report looked up at her boss, saying in a soft tone, "It's exactly as you predicted, Councilmen Lekmet."

The goat creature nodded solemnly, his brilliant mind just thinking and calculating for a few moments, turning over possibilities and thoughts too complex for mere mortals to even comprehend. Before finally, he met Baby's eye bleating out a commanding message to the feline, "Thank you for your assistance in this matter."

"Of course, Councilmen Lekmet," Baby said before bowing. "Shall I send this report to the rest of the commission?"

Lekmet shook his head, holding out a paw toward Baby. "No, I will deliver it to them myself," he replied and the fairy happily passed him the clipboard, before going back to eating her treats. Lekmet read over the tiny print for a moment. He would have to be sure to 'fix it' before turning it into the others. He couldn't give them any more tools against Star. Remembering to cover his bases, he added sternly, "What we discussed here does not leave this room."

"That's probably for the best," the fairy said, peeling back the wrapper on another snooker's. "Heckapoo and the others sure have it out for those kids. But personally, I can't help but route for them. Star and Marco's goals are noble. I hope they can pull it off."

Lekmet's gaze softened while his mind turning with a thousand possibilities and outcomes, before holding on a shining future where two teens achieve the impossible, Monsters and Mewmans united and at peace. And even though, Lekmet knew he held very little sway amongst the other, younger members of the commission, he would still do everything in his power to see this future came to light. Even if that meant going behind the commission's back. Star and Marco may not know it, but they had a hidden ally, silently cheering them on in secret. "As do I," Lekmet said in a soft, far-away tone, a hint of sadness and longing just barely creeping into his voice.

#Star vs #Star vs AU #My Writing #Light of the Sun and Stars #Starco

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