#and that she slipped into jackie's skin w/out realizing it. attempting to live as an inversion of her and thereby continuing to refer to he

[selfinflictedgunshotwound]

double, triple, quadrupling-down, even, on being a shauna shipman defender. the more evil she is in the show the happier i get idgaf that's my girl

[thdorkmagnet]

Chapter 3: Hoodies and Headbands

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: Star take Marco shopping. 

Check out my other stuff on Fanfiction! 

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

Previous Chapter>>

Next Chapter>>

 Marco slowly opened his eyes, enjoying the warmth of the afternoon sun on his tanned skin. He let out a deep yawn, trying to shrink farther under the warm covers, but he felt like something heavy was on top of him and it was disturbing his sleep. He sat up, trying to see what it was that was intruding on his peaceful slumber, until he came face to face with a dark haired girl. She hissed at him, reveling vampiric-like fangs and Marco screamed trying to scramble away from the girl, but in his rush he slipped and fell off the bed. He hit the floor with a loud thump, his body aching due to its contact with the firm ground.

The girl turned, staring down at him from her perch on the bed, a smooth smirk on her face, her fangs shining in the afternoon light. Her skin was tanned like Marco's and she had messy black hair tucked into a brown beanie, her eyes a slightly darker shade of brown. She had small skull cheek marks that glowed green when the light caught them. She wore a plain, olive green shirt beneath a turquoise blue jacket and a modestly short brown skirt, that matched her beanie and stylish brown boots. Though she didn't seem all that intimidating, the look in her eyes was giving Marco the creeps as she continued to stare at him.

“W-Who are you?” Marco squeaked, trying to back away from the crazy girl.

“Doesn't matter who I am,” the girl said, nonchalantly.

“What?!” Marco screeched in confusion.

“Who you are, now that's the question,” she continued raising a finger in the air, ignoring Marco's outburst. “You could be a thief here to steal from the Crown Princess of Mewni.”

“Theif?” Marco whimpered.

“Or, maybe your an assassin here to kill our beloved princess,” she added, a glare settling on her face, her fangs still visible beneath her frown.

“Assassin!” Marco squeaked, fear tightening its hold on his throat, making normal speech nearly impossible.

“Either way, I'm gonna have to kill you,” she said, calmly.

Marco panicked as the girl got off the bed and began walking over to him, her fangs clearly seen poking out from beneath her upper lip and Marco shuddered. “Wait no, stop!” he pleaded, waving his hands frantically in the air, while trying to scoot farther back, as the scary girl stalked closer. “There's been a mistake!”

“Janna!” a voice yelled and the two both turned to another girl, standing in the doorway with her hands on her hips, glaring at the girl towering over the shaking Marco. She had short, light-colored hair, almost white, with a single green stripe running down the left side. Her green eyes were wide and sparkling, her confidence radiating off of her even in the tense moment. She wore a white shirt with, dark green sleeves, a small seashell necklace hanging loosely around her neck, easily noticeable in front of the white top. She wore blue jean shorts coupled by long, white socks with green stripes that matched her sleeves, followed by light-blue sneakers. Marco looked at the girl with curiosity as she continued to glare from the doorway.

“Stop scaring him,” she scolded, her eyes narrowing. Marco's eyes darted between the two girls for a moment, trying to make sense of this strange situation.

“What, he's new.” the girl named Janna defended, raising her arms innocently, all traces of malice gone from her voice. “It's my job to scare him.”

The other girl sighed, before walking over and helping Marco to his feet. “Sorry about that, dude. Janna's bark is worse than her bite.”

“Wait, she was gonna bite me!” Marco panicked, quickly covering his neck with his hands.

The light-haired girl gave him a skeptic look, while Janna rolled her eyes at the boy's naivety. “Nah, the fangs are totally fake...” Janna reassured, her voice attempting to sound soothing, despite the fact it did nothing to assure Marco in the slightest. “Unless you don't want them to be,” Janna added, waving her eyebrows at the confused boy, who took a step back so he now had the light-headed girl between him and the strange one.

“Ignore her,” the other girl said, putting a hand on Marco's shoulder drawing his attention. She gave him a soothing smile, her eyes bright with cool enthusiasm. “I'm Jackie by the way. Jackie Lynn Thomas.” She extended her hand to Marco, who eyed it for a moment before remembering that that was how you greeted people here. He shook her hand, returning the smile, though not as confident as Jackie's.

“Marco,” he said, keeping an eye on the fanged girl out of the corner of his eye. But she seemed distracted, as she had pulled out a small, rectangular device from her pocket, which she kept poking and staring at, the small screen lighting up her face. So, Marco shifted his attention back to his “rescuer”. He cocked his head to the side, noticing something off about the girl.

“You don't have any cheek marks,” he said, pointing at her face. And it was true, though the girl's face was coated in tiny freckles, there was no sign of any special markings anywhere on her. But she didn't seemed fazed by Marco's statement, keeping a cool smile on her speckled face.

“Oh, that's because I'm human,” she responded, nonchalantly.

“Human?” Marco, repeated, the word sounding weird on his tongue.

Jackie laughed at the thoughtful look on the boy's face, before explaining, “I'm from Earth.”

“Ohhhh,” Marco said, remembering hearing about Mewni's closest allied dimension, the monsters often whispering about it when they thought Marco wasn't listening. He had questioned Buff Frog about it and he had explained that Earth and Mewni shared a long personal history with each other. They hadn't started off as allies, apparently, as Mewnian's magical capabilities made them appear far superior to the magicless Earthlings, putting bad blood between the two cultures. At one point, Mewni had attempted to take over the backwards planet, but had been surprised by the Earthlings strong will and heavy advancements in technology, none of them able to trully defeat the stubborn humans. So they had ended the fighting, becoming two united worlds, providing and trading with one another, their two worlds opening up their borders to each other, travel between the two dimensions frequent. Though Mewni still leaned heavily on its magic and Earth its science, the two had no doubt influenced one another's way of life. Or so Buff Frog had said.

“Oh, good Marco, your up,” came a voice from the doorway and he turned to see Star, smiling happily at them.

“Hey there, Star,” Jackie said.

“'Sup,” Janna said in a monotone, her face still buried in her device.

“Oh and you've met Jackie and Janna, too,” she said, clapping her hands together in joy. Then she looked to Janna before saying, in a meaningful way, “I hope they behaved themselves.”

Janna looked up from her phone, to see Star and Jackie glaring at her, while Marco kept a frightened eye on her, keeping his distance.

“Hey, that is behaved for me,” she responded with a shrug, making Jackie sigh.

“Yeah, she's kinda right,” Jackie agreed.

Star shook her head, before the smile returned once again. “Well as long as it all worked out,” she said, the grin never leaving her face and Marco couldn't help but notice that there seemed something off about it now. “Marco's going to be staying with us for a while so I want you two to be on your best behavior and make him feel welcome, okay?”

“Yeah, sure,” Jackie said, having heard a similar conversation with one of Star's servants not an hour ago, when she had been informed a new orphan was in the castle.

“So, Star,” Janna said, putting an arm around the princess. “Where'd you meet mister observant over there?” She gestured over to where Marco stood and they all followed her gaze. Marco seeing all the attention now in his direction, turned to see who it was they were talking about, only to find himself staring at nothing.

Star smiled at his cuteness, before turning to her beanie-wearing friend. “We met this morning... while I was, ummm,” she drifted off into silence, biting her bottom lip as she tried to think of a good excuse.

“She was using magic!” Marco exclaimed, sounding super excited as he remembered the impressive display from that morning. Star felt her cheeks glow red as Jackie and Janna's stares burned into her skin, not daring to look either of them in the eye.

“Magic practice, again?” Jackie said with a encouraging smile. “That's awesome! Good for you, Star!”

“Did you at least burn another house down like last time?” Janna said, with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

“No, no,” Star stammered, her voice a shy whisper, still feeling nervous as her secret became common knowledge among her two closest friends. “I did it out in the forest this time, where no one could see?”

“Aww, lame,” Janna huffed in disappointment. “What's the point if nothing gets destroyed?”

“Well she did destroy a lot of trees,” Marco pointed out, before ducking behind Jackie again as Janna's focus came to rest on him.

“Okay, can we quit talking about it now?!” Star exclaimed, her whole face flushed with embarrassment, as she pleaded with her friends to please drop the subject.

Janna shut her mouth, seeing Star in obvious distress, her normally cool confidence fading as she realized she had gone too far this time and she had no idea how to fix her mistake. Marco felt guilt gnaw at him, as he saw how upset Star clearly was over this. He couldn't help but beat himself up for upsetting the girl who had been so nice to him. Jackie, however, put a comforting hand on Star's shoulder. “Hey, there's no need to be ashamed, Star. Everyone knows your new to the wand, no one expects you to get it, right away,” she said in a comforting tone.

Star let out a breath, all of her stress melting off of her. She knew what Jackie was saying was true. She had only had the wand for a little over a month, but it still unnerved her to know that she hadn't fully mastered control of it yet. Her mother had assured her that it would take time, but Star felt impatient. The people of Mewni looked up to her and needed to see her as a strong leader who would carry them forward in this dark time, not some happy-go-lucky teenager who couldn't use her wand without unwantingly setting something on fire.

“Your right, thanks Jackie,” she said, with a thankful smile. Jackie gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze, before releasing her hold on the blond.

“No problem.”

Star, seemed to relax, her smile returning as she turned to Marco, walking over and grabbing his hand, the boy's face instantly turning red. “All right, come on Marco, we're off for town,” she said with a cute smile. Behind her, Jackie and Janna shared a look as they watched the two teen's interactions, their critical eyes not missing Marco's blushing face or Star's shimmering eyes.

“We are?” Marco asked, his brain suddenly having trouble functioning due to Star's soft hands wrapped around his own.

“You guys are going to town,” Jackie asked in confusion. “Don't you have other business to attend to? Like I don't know, running Mewni.”

Star turned to Jackie, her face in shock as she seemed to remember that there were still other people in the room besides Marco. But she recovered quickly, responding, “Well, yes, but it can wait. Since Marco is going to be staying with us he's going to need some essentials.”

“Can't you just ask one of the servants to do it?” Janna skeptically asked with crossed arms.

Star thought for a moment before answering. “Well I guess I could, but Marco's well-being is at the top of my list and I have to make sure our new guest has everything he needs to be comfortable.”

Janna huffed. “What a waste of royal power.”

“So wait, what exactly are we doing?” Marco asked, looking around at the three girls for conformation.

Star turned to him with an excited look on her face. “The best thing in the world...” Star exclaimed, her voice as dramatic as possible, before she quickly pumped a fist int the air and yelled at the top of her lungs, “Shopping!!”

…

Marco looked around the bustling streets of Mewni in a silent awe, admiring all the sights that the town had to offer. Star walked silently beside him, smiling to herself at Marco's giddiness, his head turning this way and that as every little movement caught the boy's wandering eye, barely able to keep himself walking straight. Behind the two were Star's escorts, their arms loaded to the brim with boxes and packages of the already purchased items, the containers reaching so high that they towered over the burly men, who were unable to be recognized from beneath the wrapped gifts. It may have looked like over-kill but Star was satisfied with her purchases, happy to be spoiling the boy who had been through so much trauma. In her opinion, he deserved every bit of money spent on him, even if the rest of Mewni wouldn't agree.

Marco had been instantly hooked on the shopping spree, picking out item after item, his adorable grin never leaving his face. Star had just smiled and handed over the money, ignoring the often skeptical looks of her critical valet, letting the boy enjoy his taste of freedom for as long as he wanted.

But now it seemed their little spree was ending, as they made their way back toward the castle, with a satisfying bundle of essentials for Marco's stay. The boy looked around him, taking in the sights when something red flashed across his vision, making him stop in his tracks.

Star didn't notice as she continued on ahead, her sights of the towering walls of her home, chatting happily to the boy she believed to still be beside her. “So looks like you got everything you got everything you wanted, huh?” She turned only to see a blank, empty space where her new friend had once been. “Marco?” she asked in confusion, looking around for the missing boy.

She spotted him a little ways off, looking in the window of a little shop, his eyes shining with wonder, mesmerized with whatever fantastic sight had caught his eye. Star walked over to him, quickly reading the sign hanging above the store: “Quest Buy Mini-mall”.

Star came up beside Marco, the boy not even acknowledging her presence, still caught in his vegetated stupor. She looked into the little promotional window for any signs of what it was that had captured Marco's attention so much, hoping there wasn't any real hypnotic devices involved, forcing  hypnotized customers to buy their most expensive item. That was illegal now after all.

But as far as she could tell there was no foal play involved as she asked curiously, “See anything you like?”

Marco didn't even look at her as he nodded, pressing his index finger up against the glass, whispering softly, “What's that?”

Star followed his pointing finger, seeing the object of his affection: a hoodie. Just a plain, red hoodie. Star looked at it carefully, sizing it up quickly. Though it seemed plain at first, it's bright red color immediately caught your eye, its simple beauty appealing to even the most cryptic eye. Even amongst the most fantastic sights from an untold number of dimensions the hoodie held it own, embracing its plainness, giving it a simple, yet pleasing look. Star could tell instantly that the hoodie would look great on the boy.

“That's a hoodie,” Star explained to him. “It's an Earth clothing.”

Marco's eyes seemed to grow even wider as he continued to stare at it as if it were some kind of unknown treasure. It seemed to be love at first sight. Star held back a smile as she offered Marco her hand. “Wanna try it on?” she asked and he seemed thrilled, finally turning to her with shining eyes.

“Can I?” Marco asked in awe, taking her hand in his own.

“Of course,” she said, leading him over to the entrance, opening the door with her free hand.

The little bell over the door rang and the store manager, a sloth, let out an irritated sigh. They had just finished their afternoon rush and things had finally settled down enough for him to relax and enjoy a little peace. But of course, the seemed too good to be true. He looked up from his magazine to see two teenagers entering the store, hand in hand, gazing around in intrigue at the various wares and items that had been collected from many different dimensions. Great just what he needed... tourists.

The manager cleared his throat, waiting for the two to respond, but they just continued to browse the items in curious silence. He sighed in annoyance, before clearing his throat again, louder than before, this time managing to capture the two's attention as they turned to him in surprise. He set the magazine down, giving the two a blank stare. “Can I help you?”

The blond girl stepped forward, smiling at the sloth softly. “My friend here would like to try on one of your red hoodies, please?” she said, gesturing to the window.

The sloth manager blinked in unamusement, trying to hold back another sigh. “What size would that be, miss?”

“Oh,” Star gasped in surprise, turning to Marco with a questioning gaze. He shrugged and she bit her lip, turning to back to the manager. “Umm, we're not really sure,” she said hesitantly. “Maybe we could... try some on?”

The manager sighed, unable to catch himself in time, as he stood up from his desk, walking slowly over to a pile of paperwork and files, just underneath his desk. He slowly sorted through the files, as Star and Marco leaned over the counter-top curiously, watching the sloth at work. Finally, he found the right one, pulling it out, squinting at the tiny lettering. He looked over at the two still bent over the counter, who gave him curious looks. He walked over to them, saying in an irritated manner, “The hoodies are located off to your left in clothing.” He gestured in the direction with a clawed finger. “Right under Earth fashion.”

“Aren't you going to help us?” Marco asked and the sloth gave him a dead-panned stare.

Star began pushing Marco off in the direction of clothing, giving the sloth a sheepish smile, quickly saying, “Thank you!”

The sloth watched the two go, before picking up his magazine once again, scoffing to himself. “Tourists.”

…

Marco skipped happily in front of Star as they approached the castle gates, Marco decked out in his new hoodie. Star's escorts walked behind the two, a respectful distance away, still holding the boxes from the long shopping trip. Marco seemed blissfully unaware of the world turning, humming softly to himself as he walked, his eyes bright and shining with wonder. Star just seemed content, her face peaceful.

The two guards watched them approach, Jak elbowing his companion. “Hey, check it out, Dex, it's the princess,” he whispered out of the corner of his mouth.

Dex sighed. “Yeah, I can see that,” he said, putting a hand to his face.

“What do you think she was doing in town, again?” Jak continued, staring quizzically at their future ruler.

“Well if I had to take a guess, I'd probably say she's been shopping,” Dex said, with obvious sarcasm.

“Huh,” Jak said, cocking his head to the side. “Yeah, I can see it.” Dex face-palmed, just as the princess finished her approach to the gates.

“Hey guys,” Star said, stopping in front of them and they immediately bowed in respect as their princess addressed them. “Welcome back, Your Highness,” they said in unison and Star gave them a grin. “You can drop the whole 'Your Highness' bit. Just Star is fine.”

“Unlikely, Your Highness,” Dex said and Jak nodded, both keeping their heads bowed.

Star sighed. “Worth a try,” she whispered, more to herself than to the others. She turned to Marco who was still admiring his hoodie and had yet to notice they had arrived at the castle. “Come on, Marco.”

Marco turned to her and quickly ran to catch up, as Star walked past the bowing guards, the gates now open wide to provide entry. The boy walked past the two guards, not nearly as nervous as before, his mind still on his new fashion trend. “Nice hoodie,” Jak said to the boy, who gave him confident smile.

“Thanks,” he said, before running after Star. The two watched as the princess, the hooded boy, and her entourage entered the castle together, before turning to each other once again. “Well he seemed completely different,” Jak said, unable to believe the shy, shaking boy from that morning was now the confident, if not absent minded, boy that they had just seen.

“Well, that's our princess for you,” Dex said, smiling to himself. “Bringing out the best in people.”

“Yeah,” Jak agreed. There was a short moment of silence, before Jak suddenly asked, “Did she seem different to you?”

“What do you mean?” Dex asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I don't know she just seemed... happier.”

“It's probably just your imagination,” Dex said, looking back out at the road in front of them, standing at attention once again. Jak thought for a moment, looking back at the castle doors, still remaining shut, before he turned his attention back to the road as well, hesitantly whispering, “Yeah, your probably right.”

…

The moment the two friends entered the castle, Star was whisked away by some important looking figures questioning where she had been and listing off the many tasks she still had to perform before the day was over. Marco seemed uncomfortable as he was quickly brushed aside and his new friend was dragged away. But Star didn't seem put off, simply following them in silence, her face blank. She turned back to Marco giving him a smile and a wave, which he returned.

He waited until the group was out of sight, before turning on his heels and heading off for his room. “Um, sir?” Marco turned to the guards that up until now he had forgotten had been there. “Your room is that way,” one of them said, gesturing to the opposite hallway. Marco gave a sheepish smile, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand. “Umm, maybe you better lead the way,” he said awkwardly  and the guards nodded, walking resolutely down the hallway, Marco following close behind.

The guard's dropped the boxes in Marco's room as some more servants, maids, quickly unpacked his things, finding everything a home and tidying up the nearly spotless room. Marco just watched in silence, sitting down on his bed, until some of the maids gave him a glare, shooing him away so they could put on his new sheets.

The servants worked fast and efficiently, while Marco just stood in the middle of his room awkwardly, waiting for them to finish. And as quickly as they had entered, they departed, bowing low to the ground as they left. Marco heard the door slam shut behind him as he took in his new living space. Everything had been organized and cleaned, all of his new things, put neatly in their selected places. Marco was impressed with their work as he walked over to his bed, running his hands along the soft, red sheets, a content smile on his face. He looked over his new bookcase and inspected every drawer in his dresser and desk, looking over each new item with curiosity.

Finally, he looked in his closet, his eyes widening immensely as they came to rest on the eleven identical red hoodies hanging neatly in his closet. He felt tears in his eyes as he looked at the small little treasure trove, touched by Star's kindness. Toffee had never treated him this kindly and Buff Frog had always done his best, but Toffee was quick to shoot down any attempt his father might have had to spoil him. Star had done so much for him in just the short time he had known her and Marco suddenly felt a burning desire to do something for her, something to thank her for all she had done for him. But what? He hadn't known her for all that long (for less than a day, actually) and knew literally nothing about what it was she liked or would want.

Marco thought for a moment, before remembering there were two people Marco knew who would have a good idea of what it was Star would like.

…

“Janna have you seen my skateboard?” Jackie asked her friend and roommate as she dug around in her closet. Janna, who was sitting comfortably on her bed, quickly replied, “Nope,” her head remaining buried in her book on 19th Century Earth poetry. Jackie sat up from her messy closet, putting her hands on her hips. “Well where could it have gone, then?”

“Not a clue,” Janna replied, with a bored tone, as she flipped to the next page of her book.

Jackie gave her a knowing look. “You know, I seem to remember someone asking to borrow my skateboard the other day.”

“I remember someone saying no,” Janna replied, emotionlessly. Jackie opened her mouth to retort until there was a soft knock at the door. She turned to Janna with a glare. “We'll discuss this later,” she said, standing.

Janna shrugged, whispering, “Whatever,” her eyes never leaving her book. Jackie opened the door and smiled eagerly seeing the face of their new house guest.

“Marco, hey!” she greeted, cheerfully.

“Hi,” Marco said, shyly, giving a tiny wave.

“Come in,” Jackie said, standing aside and opening the door wider so the boy could pass inside more easily.

“Thanks,” Marco said, stepping inside, looking around the room. It was larger than his own, but then that made sense considering that the two roomed together, the room literally split in half, with two beds, closets, and so on. But the differences in the two's personalities couldn't be more apparent, one side reflecting Janna's love of all things creepy and disturbing and Jackie's side reflecting her love of sports.

“Nice hoodie.” Marco turned to see Janna staring at him and he gave her an uncomfortable smile, still slightly frightened of the girl.

“Oh yeah,” Jackie said, just noticing his change in wardrobe. “It looks good on you, Marco.”

Marco looked proud at their praise, a confident smile spreading on his lips. “Thanks.”

“Yeah, it looks 'blood' red,” Janna said with a mysterious tint to her voice and Marco's smile vanished, looking frightened once again.

Jackie put a hand on his shoulder, rolling her eyes and giving him a reassuring smile. “So, what did you come here to tell us, Marco?” Jackie asked.

“Oh, umm,” Marco said, still staring at Janna suspiciously, before shaking his head so he could focus once again. “I wanted to ask your help with something.”

“What's that?” Jackie said, slightly confused. Marco took a deep breath before quickly blurting his answer as fast as he could, the words just tumbling out without his control.

“Well, Star was really nice getting me all these things, like the hoodies and the bed sheets and everything, and I just wanted to make it up to her so I thought I could get her something. But I don't know what she likes and I was hoping maybe you could help me because you know her better than I do.” He took a few deep breaths, trying to regain his air supply as Jackie and Janna just stared at him in shock.

The two shared a look really quick, before Jackie asked, “You really want to get her something?” Marco nodded vigorously, before going off on a tangent once again.

“Yeah. She's just been so sweet and everything. She's so nice and funny and pretty and-” Marco's voice cut off as his cheeks turned bright red. He looked down at the floor, a distant look on his face. His eyes seemed to shine as he thought of the girl. Jackie studied his face carefully for a moment, taking in the look of hidden joy on his face. She thought it over, this boy was new but he seemed well-meaning, his naivety making it hard to say no. Still, Star had become a pretty private person recently and she wasn't sure how she would react if Jackie gave Marco the gift she had in mind. But, Jackie also knew that the fact that Star was acting like such a private person meant that she was upset about something, something she had yet to tell her or Janna, her two closest friends. She suspected it had to do with all the new pressures that had just been thrown on her, but until Star talked about it, she had no way of knowing.

Plus, she couldn't stop thinking about that smile she had given Marco earlier that afternoon. She had seemed genuinely happy, more so than Jackie had seen her in, well, years. For whatever reason, Marco seemed to bring out the best in Star and he might just be what Jackie had been looking for.

Finally, she took a deep breath, before she said, “Well there is one thing.” Janna gave her a suspicious look, which Jackie ignored keeping her eyes on Marco. The boy didn't notice this little exchange, though, smiling excitedly at the idea of accomplishing his goals. “Really? What?!” he exclaimed.

Jackie, ignoring the look her roommate continued to give her, walking over to her bed and reached underneath pulling out a small, white box from underneath. It was coated in dust and it looked to Marco like it hadn't been disturbed for several years. Jackie carried the box over to her desk, carefully wiping the object clean.

Marco came up beside the girl, looking at the box intensely. Jackie slowly lifted the lid and Marco squinted, trying to stare inside at the box's contents. The box was more or less empty except for a small headband, that barely took up half of the box's space. The hairband was red with two little spikes looking like horns sticking up at the top. Marco examined the object curiously, tilting his head to the side. “A headband?” Marco questioned.

“Yep,” Jackie said. “It used to belong to Star. But she stopped wearing it a few years ago. So rather than letting her throw it out, I kept it. Thought she might like it back someday.” Her voice grew soft at the end, but Marco didn't notice, his focus on nothing but the small, little headpiece.

“And you're sure she'll like it?” he asked, turning to Jackie for conformation.

“Positive,” she said with a confident nod. That was good enough for Marco.

“Okay, so what do I wrap it with?” he asked, looking around the room for supplies.

“Got you covered!” Marco and Jackie looked to see Janna over by Jackie's closet, smiling with a mischievous grin. Before the two could question her methods she tapped the side of the closet and a secret compartment opened up, reveling a hidden stash within. The two walked over, looking inside Janna's hideaway, all manors of things scattered and strewn about within. Marco's eyes shined with wonder as they came to rest on the colorful wrapping paper and ribbon.

“Thanks!” he screamed in excitement, grabbing the paper and running over to the box. Jackie, however, gazed into her closet in horror.

“Janna, what is all this stuff?” she said in a questioning tone.

Janna shrugged, smugly replying, “Just some stuff I found.”

“Janna you didn't!” Jackie groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose.

“What?!” Janna exclaimed defensively, crossing her arms. “Not like anyone was using this stuff. It was all just... lying around.”

“Is that my skateboard?!” Jackie screamed, pointing out her most valuable possession half-buried beneath Janna's junk.

“Oops, how did that get in there?” Janna said, deep in thought.

“Janna!”

“What?! Technically it's still in your closet.”

“Oh my gosh! Why is all this stuff in my closet?!”

“Cause I ran out of room in mine, duh.”

“Umm, guys.” The two friends stopped their argument turning to the boy. He was wrapped completely head to toe in the colorful red ribbon, his arms suspended above his head, his body twisted at a weird angel. He looked at them with a fearful look, quickly squeaking, “Help!”

…

Star let out a deep sigh, rubbing her sore shoulder softly. She had been signing piles and piles of paperwork for hours, having lost feeling in her hand hours ago. She held her shoes in loosely in her less-sore hand, letting her aching feet rest for a moment as she quietly made her way back to her room. It was now late night and she was eager to get changed and go check on Marco. She hadn't even been able to go and see how he was settling in, which annoyed her to no end. Her thoughts had been on the boy all day, distracting her and making her want to see him even more. But, as always, there was always more work for her to do.

“A princess' job is never done,” she murmured, opening the door to her room, flinging her shoes in the general direction of her closet, too tired to see if they made it in. She stretched, walking over to the small couch in her bedroom, and collapsing onto it with a tired sigh. She let her body relax, closing her eyes and just enjoying the peaceful moment, letting out a content sigh as the world seemed to right itself once again. Slowly, unbeknownst to Star, a shadow grew over her face, as a figure rose from behind the couch, eyes trained on the resting girl.

“Hey Star!” Marco screamed with excitement and Star screamed, immediately jumping up so she was now standing on the couch, trying to get a hold of her wand. She fumbled around with it for a few seconds, before holding it straight out, pointed at the source of her fright. Marco froze, hands raised, looking at Star in shock.

“Marco?” Star said, her angry frown quickly switching to confusion as she realized it was the hooded boy in front of her and not some monster.

“Hey,” the boy said with a wave, still frozen in shock. Star let out a relieved sigh, dropping her wand to her side and putting a hand over her pounding heart.

“Don't scare me like that,” she gasped out.

“Sorry,” Marco apologized sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck, keeping a hand behind his back. “I guess I just got carried away.”

Star sat back down on the couch, relaxing once again. “It's okay. So what brings you to my room?” she said with a smile, patting the seat beside her.

“I got you something,” Marco said, moving so he could sit next to her, careful to keep the package out of her sight. Suddenly, he thrust the present out from behind his back and into her hands. “Tada!” he exclaimed, with a wide flourish, giving her the widest smile he could manage.

Star looked at the box with surprise. It was wrapped in pretty, purple paper with a thick red ribbon tied neatly around it and Star could tell that Marco had put a lot of time and detail in making it look just right. “What's this?” she asked, turning the gift over in her hands.

“I got you a present, as a way to say thank you for everything you've done!” Marco explained.

“Oh, Marco,” Star said, giving him a sympathetic look. “You didn't have to do that.”

“But I wanted to,” Marco argued, his face looking so plain and innocent as he smiled at her.

Star smiled back, touched by his thoughtfulness. Marco, quickly losing patience, looked back and forth between Star and the gift eagerly. “Sooo... are you gonna open it?” he asked impatiently, slowly leaning closer.

Star laughed. “Ok, ok. Here we go,” she said, carefully removing the red ribbon from around the box's frame. Marco watched with a held breath as she ripped off the paper, slowly removing the lid from the now plain box. She froze staring in at the box's sole item, her face unreadable. Marco's shining eyes jumped back and forth between his friend and her old headband, waiting for a reaction, his every nerve trained on Star's face. Her hand slowly reached into the box, pulling out the red devil-horned headband that had once belonged to her. She stared at the small object in her palm with wide eyes. “Oh, Marco,” she breathed, unable to finish the sentence, her voice drifting off into silence. Tears slowly welled up at the very edge of her eyes and Marco felt his heart drop at the sight of her crying, his happy grin vanishing in a flash.

“Oh, no,” he groaned, making Star turn to him in shock. “You don't like it.” Marco's voice was the saddest thing Star had ever heard, his normally cute face morphing to one of pure depression.

“I'm sorry,” he continued, reaching a hand out to take the present away. “I'll just... take that back and-”

“Thank you.”

Marco froze looking at Star in confusion. “What?”

“Thank you, Marco,” she whispered, her voice chocked up, but there was a soft smile on her face, her glossy eyes shining with gratitude.

“So you don't... hate it?” Marco asked, hesitantly.

Star let out a small laugh, wiping the tears from her eyes. “No, I love it,” she said, putting a hand to her heart. Marco's smile returned and Star couldn't help but feel better just from seeing it. And she found she couldn't resist it anymore. Just as suddenly as before, she wrapped her arms around him, drawing him into a hug. He froze, as her shaky breath tickled his neck. “Thank you so much, Marco,” she whispered again, tightening her hold on him.

He finally managed to respond, bringing his own arms around her small frame, burying his head in her neck. And as he enveloped himself in Star's warmth he realized how truly glad he was to be there with Star. Life on Mewni was complicated and sometimes confusing, but it seemed like it was gonna be nice. Especially with Star. He felt some new, unknown emotion every time he was around her and although he didn't know what it was yet, he would do whatever it took to learn more. “Your welcome... Star.”

The door to Star's room, which had been cracked open, slowly closed making a barely audible click as the two peepers turning to each other with knowing looks. “See I told you,” Jackie said to her friend. “Did you see the way she looked at him?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Janna said with a dismissive wave. “Anyone could tell those two have a thing for each other.” She leaned against the wall. “I give it a week, before our dear princess has herself a new boyfriend.”

“Come on, Janna,” Jackie said with an eye roll. “Be realistic. Star isn't super open to people like she used to be. I'd give it a month at the least. Probably more.”

Janna huffed. “Coming from the girl who practically pushed those two together. I mean, Star's old headband, really? We both agreed we'd give that to her together and then you just fling it into Mr. Naive's hands. Subtle.”

Jackie frowned. “Okay, okay. I'm sorry. It's just... I think he's what we've been looking for. I think he's gonna be good for her. That's the happiest I've seen her in so long.”

Janna raised an eyebrow at her friend and Jackie quickly added, “All right, how about this? I bet you twenty dollars that Star and Marco will end up together completely on their own in no more than three months, with no outside influence from either of us.”

“Your on,” Janna said, pulling away from the wall so she was now standing face to face with Jackie. “One month or less and those two are smacking face, guarantee it.”

“We'll see,” Jackie said holding out her hand to Janna, who shook it firmly, the two with an equally mischievous smirk. Finally, their handshake broke, as they walked off for their room again.

Janna let out a small chuckle. “Easiest twenty bucks I ever made.”