#other characters wear stripes as well but I think Jackie wears them the most

[henry-fox-biggest-stan]

Jackie and stripes. Is this anything

[jan-uinely]

hot takes continued

here we go. season 12 episode 12. 

so. it’s time to chit chat about drag race. if u dont like my opinions sry. 

this is gonna get bigger than one episode or one season. this is meta drag race. 

but first i guess the episode. right. so. obviously it was a “musical” so obviously i wanted to see jan sing and obviously she did not. I do think that this challenge [not necessarily placed in this episode] would have been a great time to do a like returning queens. but i digress.

i think that it was a little muddled. like it wasn't like any of the “girl group” numbers where it’s just the verse and chorus. all of the verses were placed in different spots throughout the show. I also think it’s ironic that this whole episode is to promote this live vegas show which is obviously not happening right now. but alas. 

i agree with bob in that i liked jackie’s verse the best. 

i did not love gigi’s outfit in the challenge. you couldn't make out the heart as easily bc the red was all the same color. I also think the material used was too chunky- it was quilted. i would have rather had the heart be quilted, not have a corset underneath it, and have the rest of the top part not be quilted. i thought it was a good concept but i would have preferred different #choices. i also would have rather the hair been straight instead of curled.

i did not have a huge issue w crystal’s orange and green outfit. i also appreciated the callback stars and stripes hair. though maybe not together?

jaida was good as per usual. i want her to win, but we will get to that later. 

also let us note the basketball wives hair that made a comeback [gigi, jackie]

runway time.

crystal and ******’s outfits did not fit the way i wanted them too, and the problems were both in the hips. when i saw them i thought the hips should be exaggerated, but instead they both looked weirdly deflated. and crystal’s torso section could have been brought in. [i did see on instagram that the person who made crystal’s look [casey caldwell who is a nyc based designer, works w a lot of neoprene/thick materials- just look up on instagram caseyyalater] actually made it for dragcon and crystal bought it right there, so it wasn’t tailored] 

in the dior v dior battle, i thought gigi won. jackie’s dress was just i think a little too large [not in terms of tailoring, in terms of diameter] but it was very jackie

gigi said that her outfit was quintessential gigi, which i think it interesting bc if you look up showgirls performances, it very much is. however in terms of the character portrayed on drag race i didn’t think it was. it was very well made, etc. but it just didn’t fit the “perfectionist trope” of the show. 

jaida is once again wearing a gown with a presequinned fabric, which i am not mad at. it is quintessential jaida. 

critiques. 

again ooh we have to nitpick bc we accidentally cast too many winners on this season blah blah blah. i was not a fan of when they said oh well we will have to look at report cards. as if they didnt intentionally load up gigi and ****** with wins at the start of the show. 

and then it’s like oh well jackie and crystal have to lip sync blah blah blah. and you know that jackie is going home. bc the judges absolutely love crystal, all because of that mullet. 

to quote bob “I used to be really upset at queens who won the judges with their personality” and that is still mostly true for me. i don’t think her placement is unjust or whatever, but like if ru didn’t like the mullet, she would not have been given the confidence boost to turn her trajectory around, compared to jackie and widow and jan, who did most things right but just were not rupaul’s fave, and must have had a much more difficult time mentally on the show. 

and FWIW heidi falls into this category as well. race chaser i think said it - all of her success comes from ru’s ideas. and being naturally funny and charismatic and having ru like you as a person is a huge gift and huge talent, but the inability to wrangle it...  that being said i think she deserves the world and will grow [and has already grown] from this experience.

and the thing is that crystal also keeps going back to the same stuff which could have been funny if the episodes were more than one apart or if she didn't do it twice in one episode but. idk. 

now, who will win, who should win, hmm hmm hmm. tbh i don’t think it will be crystal. they just crowned the oddball and they like to mix it up, or at least try to. also why looking at the history of dusted or busted scores [and s/o to jan for coming in @ 4 [after the disqualification]] crystal is at a 2, and bebe won with the lowest score at a 3 [w 2nd and 3rd place at 4 and 5], and that was in season 1, which was a whole other ballgame. leaving us with jaida and gigi. i am team jaida. i think that she is much more developed as an artist and performer than gigi, and I think that she will bring us something new.

[here comes the meta part]

the title is america’s next drag superstar. and i think in the beginning of the show, they decided that that had to mean something new and exciting, something that pushed the boundaries of what drag could be [which is rly ironic coming from them but]. which has developed this culture of what is the formula to be successful on drag race. and some people were more overt about this [jan] and some people were more subtle about this [gigi and jackie]. 

but for some reason, the [Black] pageant queens will make it to the top and then never win. - and they’ve had overt conversations regarding pageants and pageant culture on the show before - but balls and pageants were like the building blocks of drag culture in the us [from what i understand]. so inherently that means it’s no longer “new” and exciting. but the thing is that so many of these fashion [/nyc] queens work so exclusively with these high end designers to produce these looks [i think bob said it can cost like 10K to prep all your stuff for drag race] and with that the ability to design and sew falls away. 

and i think that is reflected in the challenges and how they have changed. this season there was one design challenge. and that is just so disappointing to me bc i think the design challenges really separate who has a full understanding of their persona and who does not. 

and with fewer and fewer design challenges, you have more and more designer items, and the ability to create something has fallen to the wayside. personally [and i will probably make another post about this later] i want to bring back the design challenges in one of two ways. 1. have an all designers season. where drag designers work to make elaborate costumes based on a prompt and given certain materials. bc on the show designers are not credited as much [that part comes on instagram]. 2. i want to have a drag race blank slate competition. where contestants audition and are given a list of prompts but cannot bring anything except like a notebook. no prepared outfits. you can sketch designs to the prompts, but all the materials are provided. contestants still have a main challenge and a runway, but rather than 2 days, they are given a full week to execute the challenge and the outfit. this would totally change the game in my mind. like one you wouldn't have to have money or take out loans to compete, you could just come and show who you are. and two the audience could see more of what goes into this stuff. AND if drag race really wants to feed us, they could do like a wed. ep and a friday ep. to spread things out. 

my favorite challenges are design challenges, and while i think the first challenge this season gave us a better introduction to who the contestants are, the design challenge is a really good thing to have at the front. 

i do think that if they had not had the debate that there would have been another design challenge in the mix, but bc it was an election year. 

anyways, i want jaida to win bc she’s excellent at what she does. and at this point there is something new and exciting about making all your own clothes and being polished and knowing who you are.  and tbh gigi doesn’t bring anything new to the table. sure the ability to sew and design is good, but compared to aquaria and violet the designs were not as diverse or inventive. on top of that, the fact that gigi is outwardly apolitical [and doesn’t understand the connotation of “privilege” in today’s times] is just not a good look. I also think that it is interesting that gigi came in as the look queen but actually did better in the acting challenges. 

idk my main takeaway is that gigi is really really good at playing other people, and with that comes a lack of self awareness. striving so hard to be perfect can come at the cost of not knowing who you are as an artist. like gigi’s brand is literally “im that bitch/bitch” which again, just isn’t what i want in a winner. 

and tbh the gigi bug bit early but ended when ru gave her the win on the madonna episode. [i will say that jackie could have won snatch game but tbh i was annoyed w her for being a little dickish to the safe girls that week [though what she said was totally understandable] and also i <3 jackie cox [and chelsea piers we stan chelsea piers in this house] i think there is something so gr8 abt being a nerd and being prepared and being on brand about it. also jackie is always the one to hop on the dolls’ lives and comment their venmo. hashtag cool aunt jackie. [though that here for cox t-shirt and the promo photos make me uncomfy though i get it]]

re jackie coming back to complete the top 4... IDK it’s nice and all but they've already established that they don’t want her to win- otherwise she would not have been eliminated. 

also in my mind there are only 12 places so jan actually came in 7, widow 6, heidi 5, jackie 4. 

anyways these are my thoughts. as usual, raw and unedited. 

[thdorkmagnet]

Chapter 10: A Sea of Strangers

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: Marco finds himself in an awkward situation, trying to make friends with a group of unknown strangers there for some ball he’s never heard of. But that may be the least of his worries as a keytar wielding boy that Star seems quite fond of enters the picture. 

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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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Marco blinked, taking in the faces of what seemed like hundreds of strangers gathered around him, talking and laughing, reminiscing about times they had shared. The hooded boy was confused to say the least, unsure how the normally empty castle grounds had become such a crowded mess, the gates wide open and the guards standing at attention, allowing the guests to pass inside. He had no idea why all these people were here or for what reason, but it seemed like he was the only one. The boy looked around him nervously, feeling surprisingly left out from the group as he realized he was the stranger in the crowd.

He lowered his head, turning to head back inside, but felt a finger run up his spine and he released an unmanly scream, drawing a few skeptic stares from the crowd. He turned on his heels only to look into the smug face of his half-monster friend. “Janna!” Marco squeaked in anger.

Janna laughed at the boy's gullibility, the few watchers turning back to their own conversations. The girl had returned to her normal, Mewman state, the pills from the night before having already taken effect. “Someone's on edge today,” Janna finally said, having ceased her laughter. “Did last night scare you more than you let on?”

Marco's face went pale at the mention of the event and Janna chuckled again. “Relax, Marco. No one's paying any attention to us. Too busy with their own thing.” She gestured to the other Mewmans around them.

“Right,” Marco sheepishly responded, still feeling uncomfortable. Though he felt much better after a good nights sleep, concern for his and Janna's secret to become exposed and the unknown truth about the monster's true intentions were making him feel slightly ill at ease. He looked around at all the unfamiliar faces that scattered the courtyard. “Umm, who are all these people?”

“Remember how we told you there were other orphans that Star took in?” Janna explained and Marco turned back to her at once.

“Yeah,” he said, nodding his head. “Are these them?”

“Yep,” Janna replied, putting an arm around his shoulder. “Though I suspect some of them are phonies.”

“Phonies?” Now Marco was really confused.

“A bunch of stuck-up know-it-all's who are just trying to get on the princess' good side. There's always a few of them every year.”

“Yeah okay but,” Marco began, before lowering his voice, cupping a hand over his mouth to prevent anyone else from hearing. “What are they doing here?”

“They're here for the ball,” Janna shrugged.

“Ball?”

“You know dresses, dancing, that kind of thing. Star's been throwing one every year for a while now. She said it's her way of staying in touch with everyone since most of them are busy with their own lives.”

“Wow,” Marco breathed, taken aback by Star's kind ways once again. “That is so nice of her.”

“Well yeah,” Janna huffed. “She considers all of us practically family.”

“Family,” Marco quietly repeated the last word, his heart warming at the mere thought of such a thing, even Janna smiling from behind the boy's back. Then, without warning, the beanie-wearing girl gave Marco a push, propelling him into the crowd and making him stumble.

“So don't just stand here like some loser, get out there and mingle!” she shouted after him.

He turned to ask her how he was supposed to do that, only to see she had already disappeared into the crowd. He huffed. “How does she do that?” he muttered to himself, shaking his head, before nervously turning back to the sea of strangers in front of him. He looked around for any signs of Star or Jackie, but saw no familiarity in the Mewmans that surrounded him, a bizarre feeling of loneliness somehow seizing him there in the crowd. But he took a deep breath, pushing the uncomfortable feeling aside, steeling his nerve as he pushed off into the crowd.  

…

Marco wandered aimlessly for a while, lingering often by small groups of people, but found himself frozen, unable to think of anything to say until the group would become put-off by his awkward gawking and walk away leaving him along again. He sighed, his embarrassment growing with every knew encounter, keeping his head down as he tried to get though the crowd without drawing anymore unwanted attention on himself. He finally slowed as he made it to what seemed to be the refreshments table, a delicious selection of snacks laid out and in easy grasp of the chatty Mewmans. Marco felt his stomach growl and decided it wouldn't hurt to grab a quick bite to eat.

He reached for a plate only to bump into a second hand, which had also been reaching for the plate. He looked up to see a Mewman boy in front of him. He was quite chubby, this was the first thing Marco noticed, the black t-shirt and gray shorts he was wearing looking almost a size too small. He had short orange hair and green eyes, his face littered with freckles like Jackie, but unlike his skater friend this boy had cheek marks. They were duel smiley faces looking messy and smudged, Marco almost mistaking them for being drawn on if weren't for the fact they were glowing slightly.

“Oh, sorry,” Marco finally said, pulling his hand away and giving him a sheepish grin. “I-I didn't see you there.”

“No problem, man,” the chubby boy responded, picking up the plate and beginning to make his stockpile of food. “It's cool.”

Marco felt an awkward tension build as he tried to think of something more to say. “Soooo are you an orphan, too?” her nervously tried and the other boy raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah,” he simply responded and Marco felt his cheeks flush.

“O-Oh, cool,” he finally muttered, sweat running down his brow. He quickly realized what he had just said, quickly adding, “I-I mean, not cool. 'Cause y'know being an orphan and all. Not that there's anything wrong with being an orphan, I mean I am too, but still I-”

Marco's panicked rant was halted as the new boy stuffed a piece of bread into his mouth. “Dude, relax,” he simply said, before returning to his food.

Marco said nothing, removing the bread from his mouth and staring at the boy in front of him. “So you got a name?” the chubby boy finally asked, ignoring the boy's awkward staring.

“Uhhhh,” Marco stammered thrown off guard by the question. “M-Marco,” he finally squeaked, inwardly groaning with embarrassment. He coughed, trying to clear his tight throat, tenderly holding out a hand to shake. “My name's Marco.” The other boy set down his plate and shook the hand of the nerve-wracked Mewman in front of him. “What's yours?” Marco finally asked, making the other smile mischievously.

“Well Marco I go by many names but you can call me King Fergore of Pixtopia!” he shouted loudly, striking a dramatic pose, his index finger coming inches from Marco's face, the startled boy blinking awkwardly unsure what to say next.

“You can just call him Ferg for short,” a nasally voice called behind them, Marco turning to see another boy. This one was much taller then Ferguson was, taller than Marco in fact. He wore thick, wire-frame glasses, a blue and white striped t-shirt and brown shorts. On top was a mop of messy brown hair. Marco also took note that this boy lacked any cheek marks, meaning he must have been human like Jackie. “His real name is Ferguson anyways,” the human boy added.

“Alfonso,” the chubby boy whined, lowering his arms. “Why'd you tell him that! I'm trying to change my name, remember?”

“Sorry, but that's never gonna catch on, Ferg,” Alfonso countered. “I mean it even sounds fake.”

“It does not!” Ferg exclaimed.

“Fergore sounds like a real name,” Al pressed, raising an eyebrow.

Ferguson crossed his arms looking depressed. “Well it could work if anyone ever listened to me,” he mumbled under his breath, flicking a tiny crumb off the table, his eyes downcast.

“I kinda like it,” Marco offered and Ferguson's face immediately brightened, giving his nerdy friend a smug smile.

“See, Oh-ye-of-little-faith, my friend Mango here likes my name,” he taunted his friend.

“It's Marco,” Marco pointed out and Ferguson quickly brushed it off.

“Whatever,” he said, stuffing another piece of bread into Marco's face. “The point is I'm right and my so-called royal advisor is wrong.”

“Wait so you're really a king?” Marco questioned in shock, inbetween bites of his food.

“Yep, he's king of all of Pixtopia,” Al explained, Ferguson looking quite pleased by the praise.

“But he's not a Pixie,” Marco pointed out, looking over the seemingly ordinary boy quizzically.

“Uh, king by marriage,” Ferg explained, rolling his eyes. “The queen couldn't get enough of this,” he smugly added, gesturing to himself and Marco gave him an awkward smile.

“I'mmmm sure,” he hesitantly answered, not sounding sure at all.

“Star introduced us a couple of years back,” Ferguson continued, ignoring the boy completely. “And it was love at first site.”

“Actually, Ferg, didn't she try to eat you when you first met?” Al pointed out.

“Okay well there was a rough patch there at the beginning, but she came around. Y'know eventually.”

Marco went silent, unknowingly tuning the boy out, his thoughts jumping to that of Star. He looked into the crowd, trying to spot a flash of that beautiful golden hair but saw nothing. “So what about you, Marco?”

Marco turned back to the boy in shock. “Huh?”

“What's your story?” Ferg asked again. “How'd you end up here?”

“Yeah, we've never seen you before so you must be pretty new,” Al added.

“Oh I uh...” Marco's eyes darted around nervously, trying to think of a good lie, fear clenching his chest. What was he supposed to say? He couldn't tell them the truth, that could be dangerous. But he couldn't say nothing. He couldn't come across as being suspicious, though from the quizzical looks the two Mewmans were giving him he had already failed at that task. He bit his lip, really wishing that now hadn't been the time when his brain had stopped functioning altogether.

“That's okay.”

Marco blinked once, almost unable to believe what he had heard. “W-What?” he squeaked, his voice tight.

“Look we get it,” Ferg gave him a comforting smile, his eyes looking surprisingly pain-filled, his companion's face in the same troubled state. “We've all been there. Don't force it, okay. If you don't want to talk about it, you shouldn't have to.”

Marco didn't know what they meant by that, but he nodded, deciding it best to let the subject drop. “Thanks,” he said, shooting them both tight smiles, which they returned.

Al coughed, breaking the tension in the room as he turned to the heavy crowd of people. “So, did you find Star yet, Ferg? Or have you just been snacking on orderves this whole time. ”

“Of course not,” Ferg retorted. “Besides, like I told you before, if she were here we would know it.”

“Why do you say that?” Marco asked.

“Because our eardrums would be bombarded by a screaming crowd of people, all desperate for the princess's attention.”

As if on cue, a person screamed from the crowd, “Look everyone, it's Princess Star!” The whole crowd erupted in a roar, as everyone rushed to the gates of the castle, desperate to speak to their precious royal heir. Marco's eyes jumped to the gates of the castle, where an almost mob-like state had broken out, his eyes searching the crowd for his friend.

“See I told you,” Ferg smugly said to his nerdy friend, but Marco barely heard him, too entranced on the girl who slowly walked through the crowd, which parted to let her pass, smiling and waving to everyone she crossed, happily chatting to her long-time friends, Jackie walking quietly behind her. She looked so regal and magical and Marco felt his heart skip a beat as somehow her wandering eyes found him in the crowd, brown meeting blue, a light smile gracing her lips. She softly waved over to him and Marco returned the gesture, accidentally knocking the punch out of Ferg's hands and right into Al's face. Marco's eyes went wide, as he rushed over to help the two, shouting his apologizes as he did.

Star chuckled lightly at the boy's klutziness, tucking a stray stand of hair behind her ears. Some things never changed. She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to see Jackie, chuckling and shaking her head. Clearly she had spotted the boy, too. The two shared a quick laugh, before Star turned back to her waiting public, walking confidently forward, as he mingled with the people she practically considered family.

“Hey, Star I missed you!” someone from the crowd yelled.

“I missed you, too!” she shouted, shooting them a wink.

“Star, I baked you a pie!”

“Star, I ate the pie!”

“I knew you would!” Star exclaimed, giving the two a high five.

“Star, I want you to sign my cast!”

“Sure Sabrina let me just...” Star reached into her cloud purse looking for a pen.

“Star, show us your wand! I bet it's really cool!” Someone from the crowd interrupted.

“I bet Star could destroy the entire monster army all by herself!”

“Yeah, I bet she could kill Toffee!”

“No way, Star's too sweet to do anything like that!”

“Yeah, she's too precious to risk her life!”

“Star Butterfly RULES!!”

Star put a hand to her blushing cheeks, not used to all this attention, well... not from them anyways. “Aww, thanks! You are all too sweet!” she thanked, a bright smile on her face.

Jackie watched the princess a short distance away, having gotten separated from her in the surrounding chaos. It was good to see Star so happy, her giddiness almost contagious, even a short distance away. She looked over to Marco, who also seemed pretty happy, talking with Ferguson and Alfonso, the three boys snacking away on the tasty treats. Though Jackie quickly noticed Marco's shifting gaze, his eyes shimmering as he continually glanced over to the blond royal.

“Well look at that,” a familiar voice stated, as Janna appeared behind the girl holding a glass of punch. “Looks like I'm close to winning the bet.”

“What?” Jackie questioned, raising an eyebrow at her friend and crossing her arms. “No you're not.”

“Oh come on, Jacks,” Janna said, with a smirk, taking a long sip of her punch before continuing. “Those two can't keep their eyes off of each other and the dance is tonight and I think we both know who Star's gonna pick to dance with her.”

Jackie rolled her eyes, but the smile never left her lips. “That doesn't mean they're gonna start dating. Remember, that was a part of the deal?”

“Details, details,” Janna said, waving a dismissive hand in the air. “I've already got it all figured out. All I have to do is-”

“Jan,” Jackie started, her voice a scolding tone.

“I'm kidding, geez, can't you take a joke,” Janna said with a smirk, putting an arm around her friend. “Truth is, I don't have to do a thing. It's smooth sailing from here on out.”

“Careful you don't want to jinx yourself,” Jackie teased.

“Aw come on,” the dark-haired girl scoffed to her friend. “What could possibly ruin things now?”

Just then the courtyard was filled with an ear-bleeding loud screech that made everyone but Star cover their ears in pain. Marco, hands pressed as tightly against his ears as he could get them, shouted in panic, “What is that?! Is something dying?!”

Jackie and Janna, on the other hand, both shared a fearful look, both simultaneously muttering, “Uh oh,” before turning to the source of the unbearable sound.

Another boy. He was an orphan just like them and he marched confidently forward holding and 'playing' his most prized possession, a keytar. He had long black hair, that covered both his eyes, cheek marks, which were dark green treble clefs, and fangs, Janna having almost forgotten that he had been so impressed by her style a few years back and decided to wear fake fangs like her, not aware that they were actually real. He wore a dark brown shirt, with a red bandana tied loosely around his neck and light brown pants that were ripped at the bottom, as well as purple boots. “Oh right, I forgot about Oskar,” Janna said, face-palming at her mistake, Jackie just watching the scene unfolding with a grimace.

Star felt her heart pound as she watched her first crush walk toward her, still playing that beautiful music that she adored. She tried to hold in a sigh as he came face to face with her, his confident smile sending shivers down her spine. “H-Hi Oskar,” she managed to squeak out, giving him a nervous wave. The boy stopped playing his beloved instrument (much to the relief of the crowd), brushing his long bangs out of the way, his bright eyes staring deep into Star's, reflecting her own image back at her.

“Hey Star,” he confidently responded. “It's been a while.”

“Yeah it has,” Star nervously responded, her throat still unbearably tight. “I-I'm glad you could make it.”

“You know I'd never miss out on one of your dances,” he replied, shooting her a flirty grin and Star felt like she might melt.

“Wow, thanks,” was all she could say, as a blush lit up her cheeks.

Marco watched the whole scene in silence, taking in the look on Star's face as her and the new boy chatted. They were too far away to be heard, but Marco's eyes were on Star and her blushing cheeks. Marco felt his stomach twist at the sight, but Marco had no idea why. Was it because she was blushing? Yes he figured it had to be, but he didn't know why that would upset him so much. Maybe because all the times he had seen Star blushing it was around him, no one else.

Marco swallowed down the lump in his throat as Star turned into a giggling mess over something the boy had said, surprised to find his hands were clenching into tight fists. Was he angry? No, not exactly. He was mad for sure, but there seemed to be more to it, a mixture of different emotions all rolled into one. He didn't know what this new feeling was, but he didn't like it and all he wanted was for it to go away.

“Don't get too upset,” Marco heard Ferguson say behind him and he turned to the two he had almost forgotten were there. “She always gets like that around him,” Ferguson continued, Alfonso nodding his head in agreement.

“Yeah, Star has a super big crush on him,” the nerdy boy added.

“Crush?” Marco muttered to himself, unsure what the new word meant. “But who is he?” he asked louder to the two, his eyes unwantingly returning to his bestie and her 'crush'.

“That would be Oskar Greason,” Ferg explained. “He's kinda a wannabe musician-”

“Well he was until Star set him up to become the apprentice of Ruberiot, the Royal Songstrul,” Al corrected.

“Right,” Ferg continued, sounding slightly upset at the interruption. “Well anyways, he's been gone a while now, the two went on a tour through every known dimension, spreading the wonders of music or something like that across the galaxy.” Ferg rolled his eyes, his voice as skeptical as could be. “Personally I think they were looking for someone who could listen to Oskar's 'music' without screaming in pain.”

“That's not true, Ferguson,” Al pointed out, adjusting his glasses. “Star actually likes his music.”

Ferg scoffed. “Well she's the only one,” he muttered, taking a long sip of his punch.

“Don't mind him,” Al said to Marco, rolling his eyes at his fuming friend. “He's just upset because he's convinced Oskar's gonna steal his dance with Star away.”

“Oh come on, you know it's coming!” Ferg suddenly shouted. “Star only dances with one person every year and it's always been Oskar! Since, like, the very beginning.”

“What?!” Marco squeaked in concern, his heart pounding away in his chest. “What do you mean?!”

“Don't worry too much about it, Marco,” Al comforted. “Star hasn't seen Oskar in a while now, I honestly don't think she's that into him anymore, despite how it looks.” The three all turned to the two, Oskar finally separating from Star, going deeper into the crowd, mingling with the others, Star just standing there shell-shocked.  “She could pick anyone tonight. Who knows, maybe even you.”

Marco said nothing as his gaze lingered on his bestie, that uncomfortable feeling finally releasing its hold on him as that old, familiar feeling returned, the feeling he always got from Star. She once again turned to him, looking like she was in a daze, but she smiled at him, giving him another short wave. Marco returned the wave, feeling his heart hammer away in his chest, his need to be near her stronger than it had ever been. He kept his eyes on Star as she jumped into another conversation with a couple of girls, whispering softly, “Yeah, maybe.”

…

“But I don't even know how to dance,” Marco stated as he sat uncomfortably in the chair in Jackie and Janna's room, watching the two girl's as they prepared everything they needed to get ready, fidgeting in his seat, his face a grimace. It was later that night, the ball now only a short time away and the two girls had unwillingly dragged the hooded boy to their room to get changed and ready, as they pulled out the supplies they had purchased a few days prior.

“You'll be fine Marco,” Jackie praised, pulling down bag after bag from the top of her closet, Janna doing the same to her's.

“Yeah, and with your Trait you'll pick it up almost instantly, so you got nothing to worry about,” Janna added.

“I guess,” Marco muttered, still feeling nervous about the whole thing, his eyes slowly drifting to the floor. “But how do we know Star will even pick me?” he stated, his voice quivering slightly with nerves. “Ferguson and Alfonso said she only dances with one person every year and it's always Oscar.” Marco's voice became uncharacteristically hard on the last word and Jackie and Janna shared a concerned look. If they didn't know any better they'd swear Marco sounded... jealous.

“Forget about Oskar,” Jackie said, putting a comforting hand on his shoulder, drawing his attention to her, her eyes shining with cool radiance. “Tonight is just gonna be about you and Star,” she stated and Marco felt his heart leap.

“Really?” Marco asked, his face hopeful and Jackie smiled at his cute, pleading eyes.

“Once we're done, Star won't be able to take her eyes off of you,” she confidently replied and Marco's face widened into one of his signature smiles.

Janna suddenly appeared behind her friend holding up a finely made suit, flinging it at the boy. “Yep, so you better hurry up and get changed.”

Marco nodded, rising out of his seat, holding his outfit as delicately as he could. “Okay.” He started heading for the door, but Janna grabbed onto his arm, stopping him in his tracks. “Uh, where do you think you're going?” she asked.

“Uh, to my room to change,” Marco hesitantly said, pointing to the door.

“Nope,” Janna said, shaking her head, already starting to drag the boy deeper into her room, much to the boy's confusion.

“But how am I supposed to change if- AHH!” Suddenly, Marco was flung into the nearest closet, the door slamming shut behind him, trapping him in the small enclosed space. “J-Janna!” Why am I in your closet?”

“Your not, your in Jackie's,” Janna called through the rough, wood frame. “Now hurry up and get changed. The ball's gonna start soon.”

Marco, now frantic not to be late, obeyed, stripping off his prized hoodie and jeans in favor of the fancy suit. He emerged from the closet in a hurry, already heading for the door. “Okay, I'm changed now let's hurry and-”

The boy was halted once more, as Jackie blocked his path, holding up a comb in one hand and a bottle of hairspray in the other, a mischievous smile on her face. “Not so fast. First we have to get you ready.”

“But I'm in the suit,” Marco squeaked, gesturing to the finely-pressed tux.

“Yes,” Jackie agreed, giving the boy a gentle push into the chair Janna had pulled out for him to land in. “But you're not quite there yet,” she gave him a soothing smile, seeing the look of fear on his face, bending down so she was level with the boy. “Don't worry about a thing, Marco. Just stay still and let us take care of it.” But her soothing tone switched to a much louder one as she sat up and called to her companion. “Ready Jan?!” Janna smirked in response, holding up several other supplies for the boy's transformation.

“Ready,” she said, her voice as dramatic as her skater friend's. Marco gulped. The girl's flew into action, preparing the boy for his big night, straitening, fixing, combing, spraying, and making any other necessary adjustments to the boy's appearance, Marco just sitting frozen in a haze of hairspray. Finally the two seemed to have finished their work, the two stepping away and lowering their weapons of fashion, smiling in admiration at their work.

Jackie nodded confidently, her eyes gleaming with satisfaction. “Nice,” she said. “You look great, Marco.”

“I do?” Marco asked and Jackie giggled.

“Yeah see for yourself,” she said, pulling him to his feet and over to their large mirror. Marco was in shock by the image he saw, though it was his own face and body he now looked cleaner and more fancy then he had ever been, his hair spikes straightened to a fine point beneath the sombrero he hadn't even noticed the two had put on him, his twin suns glowing brighter then ever, and the finely made tux making him look dignified, the gold lining around its edges giving it a nice flair. The girls had even somehow gotten a red tie on him without noticing.

“Wow, is-is that me?” Marco breathed, putting a hand on his mirror image self.

“Yeah it is,” Jackie said confidently.

“We do good work,” Janna said, her and Jackie sharing a high five.

He turned back to the two with a gracious smile. “Thanks you two.”

“Your welcome, Marco,” Jackie said. “It was our pleasure.”

“But,” Janna said matter-of-factly, walking toward the boy. “Now it's our turn to get ready.”

“So?” Marco asked, confused why the girl was getting so close to him, Janna grabbing him firmly by the shoulders, making him squeak.

The door to the room was flung open as Marco stumbled out, just barely stopping himself from running head-first into the wall. He turned back to the two girls in confusion asking, “Why do I have to go out?”

“Because you do,” was all Jackie said, putting hands to her hips and shooting the boy a playful smirk. “Don't worry we won't be long,” she continued before her roommate took over.

“And in the meantime-” Janna started.

“Don't mess up your hair-” Jackie warned, wagging a finger at the boy.

“Don't get your clothes dirty-” Janna added, her tone equally scolding.

“And above all, don't let Star or the others see you until we're ready,” Jackie finished.

The two immediately relaxed, their scolding glares vanishing as they smiled at the boy. “Okay so just wait here we'll be out in a minute,” Jackie said, shooting the startled boy a grin.

Then, just like that, the door closed leaving a frazzled Marco alone with his thoughts. “Are all girls like that or just the ones I know?” Marco asked the empty hallway, before shrugging and moving to sit on the floor.

“Don't even think about it!” Jackie's scolding voice called from the other side of the door, making Marco jump to his feet. He guiltily stared at the closed door, wondering how she had seen him do anything from another room, but he didn't dare question it as he went and found a nearby chair to sit in. He made sure to keep his hands in his lap, sitting up as straight as he could, being as careful as possible so as to not to disturb his new outfit. The seconds ticked away in the dark hallway, Marco growing more and more impatient with every passing second, the ticking of a nearby clock doing nothing to settle his nervous energy. And as the seconds dragged into minutes, Marco grew more and more concerned that they would be late for the ball, his finger tapping his knee impatiently. What time was it anyways? Marco felt a pang of fear as he realized he didn't know what time the ball actually started.

Finally, the little patience he had wore thin, as he rose out of his chair and over to the closed door. “Jackie. Janna?” Marco whispered softly, moving to put his ear against the door. “Are you two almost-”

Marco was interrupted, though, as the door opened, Jackie and Janna emerging from their room, now wearing their fancy ballgowns, making the boy stumble back in surprise. But Marco recovered quickly, his mouth dropping open at the sight of the two well-dressed young ladies.  Jackie was wearing a sea-foam green dress that flowed all the way to the floor looking almost like waves, her counterpart wearing a sleeveless black dress that went down to just above her knees and a bright blue jacket, switching her brown boots out for a blue pair that matched her jacket. Though the two looked breathtaking in the new outfits, Marco saw signs of familiarity on them, Jackie still wearing the seashell necklace and Janna refusing to take off her brown beanie, though her hair had been fixed up for the ball.

“Wowww,” he breathed. “You two look amazing!”

“Aww, thanks Marco,” Jackie said with a smile.

“You clean up pretty nice yourself,” Janna said, shooting the boy a wink.

Marco gave his friend a confused look. “But you two were the ones who-”

“Just... take the compliment,” Janna sighed. “I don't give those out freely, y'know.”

Marco looked over to Jackie for help and she just shrugged. “I'd just enjoy 'Nice Janna' while she lasts,” Jackie suggested and Marco nodded in agreement. Janna didn't seem troubled by the statement as the trio started for the ball, walking side by side down the dark hallway.

“I prefer the term 'Normal Janna',” Janna said matter-of-factly.

“Normal?” Jackie teased, shooting her friend a look.

“Okay, okay, less creepy,” she reasoned and Marco laughed at the two. “Oh and that reminds me,” Janna exclaimed, snapping her fingers in remembrance, reaching into her purse and handing the boy a mask.

“What's this?” Marco questioned, turning the colorful object in his hands, examining it closer. It was white and just like his suit was embroidered with designs, making it resemble a skull.

“Uhh, it's a mask, duh,” Janna lightly smirked, but there was a hint of a smile on her lips.

“What do I need this for?” Marco asked the beanie-wearing girl.

“It'll give you an air of mystery,” Janna said, doing a wide, jazz hand flourish to emphasize her point.

“How do you figure that one, Jan?” Jackie asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Think about it, Jacks, most of the people who are gonna be at the ball don't even know who Marco is, meaning that'll leave them guessing who could be swooping their princess off her feet.”

“And that's a good thing?” Marco innocently asked, still examining the object.

“Yeah it is,” Janna exclaimed. “Trust me, girls like a little mystery.”

“But won't it be harder for her to recognize him?” Jackie pointed out.

“Are you kidding? Star could spot our dear Marco halfway across Mewni.”

The two turned to Marco, who was having trouble putting the mask on, somehow tying his hands together with the string, shaking his arms in panic and the two smiled. “Good point,” Jackie said, before reaching over to untie the boy.

“Where did you find this, Janna?” Marco asked, as the skater undid the troublesome knot.

Janna waved a nonchalant hand in the air. “Don't ask questions you don't want the answer too.”

Marco's eyes widened and Jackie turned to her friend with a suspicious glare. “Jan-”

“What?” she shrugged, shooting her friend an innocent grin, well what was supposed to be one anyways. “I just found it lying around-”

“Uh huh,” Jackie started, raising an eyebrow.

“On someone's face,” she finished, giving the two a smirking grin.

“You stole it off of someone's face!” Jackie screamed.

“Yeah, I know I was impressed, too,” Janna confidently responded, looking quite pleased with her charade. “He never even noticed it was gone.”

Jackie, finished untying the object from around Marco's wrist, moved closer to her roommate. “That's not what I meant!”

“Relax, he didn't want it anyways. It didn't have enough eye holes.”

“Eye holes? Wait did you steal it from Tom?!”

“Maaayyyybe?”

“Janna!”

Marco smiled at his two arguing friends, looking down at the mask again. He took a deep breath in, still feeling slightly jittery at the idea of dancing with Star, but he couldn't back down now. He wanted this. He knew he did, the familiar, warm feeling filled his every being as his grip tightened on the small mask. He could do this. He just had to go with the flow. Whatever happened tonight, he had to be ready. With that, Marco slipped the mask over his face, completing his disguise.  

[getaandlucius]

EVERGREEN LOVE, part 6

part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7 , part 8, part 9

Summary; It’s three days after the storm and you are at a lecture thinking back at a crazy occurrence (inspired by Logan from Gilmore girls!) that made Roger and you become friends. Later you also attend a  gig of Rogers band smile! 

wordcount; 2,8k

Warnings; swearing, tiiiiiny bit of angst, fluff

 Thankyou for reading everyone!! This part wil be a fun one, so sit back and relax! The dress I imagine reader wearing at the gig is this one from Jackie Burkhart! 

‘Does it still hurt?’ You asked.

‘My heart? Yes, consistently.’

‘Your ribs, stupid.’ You said, smiling.  

It was three days after Roger had gotten back from his sailing trip and everything had returned to normal. You were back to the banter that marked your relationship and you were glad nothing had changed. You were sitting in the lecture hall with a couple of minutes before lecture and were waiting for professor Goodall to come in and talk about plant physiology. A subject you knew would keep Rogers interest for at most 20 minutes before he would start getting annoying and in need of attention.

‘Ah. My ribs are splendid.’ He answered your question. Professor Goodall had now entered the room and started to quiet down the audience.

‘Wanna see?’ Roger asked and before you could say no, he stood up and pulled up his striped t-shirt to proudly show you the bandages that were wrapped around his upper body.

‘Taylor. Sit down. Nobody wants to see that.’ Professor Goodall said with a sour expression.

‘I wouldn’t be so sure about that sir.’ Roger replied with a hint of a smirk.

‘Just sit down an try paying attention for once Taylor. And save me the cockiness next time.’

You pulled Roger down by his wrist before he could make more of a fuss. It was no secret that professor Goodall wasn’t very fond of Roger and neither was he fond of you after an incident that had taken place almost two years ago.

--------------------- 

It was at the start of spring semester and you were both in your first year. You didn’t know Roger very well at the time having only spoken to him briefly so you couldn’t possibly foresee what was about to happen.

You were sitting in the middle of the audience next to Ally, scrabbling down notes while listening to the professor. He just started explaining the cell cycles of micro-organisms when a guy came rushing in, interrupting the lecture.

‘Y/N!’ You looked up, surprised at hearing your name. ‘Darling! My love.’ He spoke dramatically. You froze in your seat.

‘What are you doing to me? Please save me from this bloody misery I can’t handle it no more.’ You tried to assimilate what was happening, everybody had now turned in their seat staring up at you. Ally was looking at you confused. You gave her a confused look back.

‘Y/N please.’ He continued.

Professor Goodall looked perplexed. ‘What in the world….’ Then turned to you. ‘Miss Y/L/N what is this?’ You gave him a clueless look.

‘Y/N! Please tell me you love me! For I’ve been in love with you from the moment we met.’ He cried theatrically. You tried placing the guy, having seen him before but not in any of your classes. His curly hair wasn’t something you would quickly forget. Then it suddenly dawned on you. Your assumption got confirmed when another guy came rushing in.

It was Roger this time. 

You suddenly got it. They were performing a play to make you as uncomfortable as you could  possibly get.

‘Brian? What the fuck?’ Roger shouted and came running towards Brian who had climbed up the stairs and was now in the audience.

Professor Goodall had finally found his voice back. ‘Taylor! Get out of my class! And take your friend with you!’ He spoke firmly but Roger ignored him completely.

‘Don’t you dare steal my girl you wanker!’ Roger grabbed Brian by his shoulders.

You didn’t know where to look, wanting to disappear under the seat and never return. You could hear the audience laughing but it felt like you weren’t there.

Brian freed himself from Rogers grip.

‘Y/N, please liberate us from this excruciating pain. You have to choose one of us.’ He said.

‘Yes Y/N. Stop playing with our fragile hearts. It’s brutal.’ Roger added, his eyes twinkling.

You couldn’t bring out a word and slightly shook your head at Roger, giving him a deadly look.

‘Taylor, get down NOW or I’ll never see you in any of my classes ever again.’ Goodall started to fully lose his temper now.

‘But sir, you don’t understand..’

‘Taylor!’ Professor Goodall spoke with his voice low, trying to sound authoritative. Roger smiled. ‘Alright.’ He said then, giving in. He started to walk down the stairs, but then stopped in the  middle turning back to face you. ‘To be continued.’ He added, a mischievous look in his eyes. You just squinted your eyes at him.

Just before he and Brian left the classroom they made a little bow, clearly enjoying the attention. Majority of the students clapped and laughed but you were just pissed.  How far they would go to get noticed was pathetic. And using you for it? How childish.

If you were completely honest with yourself, you maybe had liked getting noticed by him a little bit. But you would never admit that out loud.

‘That was… curious.’ Ally said, at the end of the lecture, gathering her books. ‘They were good though.. very invested.’You rolled your eyes at her.

After class you saw the boys waiting outside, leaning against the wall, talking. First you considered to just walk away, ignoring them and pretending the whole thing hadn’t happened. But then Roger waived at you so you gathered your courage and decided to talk to them.

‘Ah there she is.’ Roger said when you started walking towards them, pushing himself off the wall and standing up straight.

‘Hi.’ You said, stepping closer. ‘Great play, very convincing.’ You started, leaning on one leg, arms filled with books. ‘Could you maybe leave me out of it though, next time?’

‘Why? You didn’t like it?’ Roger asked innocently.

‘Look, I know you guys like attention, but there are plenty of ways to get that elsewhere aside from embarrassing me, believe it or not.’

‘I know that love, but that’s a pity cause I just wanted attention from you.’

Even though you didn’t believe a word he was saying, you didn’t know how to respond to that.

‘What do you mean.’ That was kind of a stupid question, you knew that, but Roger smiled sweetly.

‘You are so hard to catch, girl. I just had to take measures for you to notice me. Forgive a fool?’

You thought about that for a second. You uncatchable? That was new. You thought it was the other way around, actually. You hadn’t really tried becoming friends with him because he seemed so hard to keep. Talking to everyone but never really staying. It wasn’t like he was popular in the usual sense of the word. He wasn’t wearing fashionable clothes, nor did he hang with the cool people. But he had something that drew people in. His unapologetic way of being himself and not giving a damn about what anyone thought of him. Choosing people on character instead of status. You had to give him that. You wouldn’t please his arrogant ass just yet though. His smooth talking wouldn’t win you over this easily.

‘Well, you have my attention now, what are you planning on doing with it?’

He was quiet for a couple of seconds, reading your face.

‘Wanna be my friend?’ He asked then, eyes wide and a toothy smile gracing his face.  

You didn’t expect this question so it took you a while to answer.

‘Okay.’ You said. Not too enthusiastic but he didn’t seem to mind.

And with that you became friends. Way better friends then you had over seen coming. Thinking back on it you wondered how Roger ever got Brian so far as to declare his love to you in front of so many people, he didn’t seem the type for it. It showed how good of a pall Brian was to him though.

 ----------

‘Hey.’ Roger pulled you back into the present.

‘Wanna go to a gig of mine and Brian?’ He whispered in your ear.

‘Of course!’ You whisper shouted back. ‘When is it?’

‘Tonight, I’ll pick you up at six, wear something cool, it’s gonna be wild.’

‘That can be arranged.’ You grinned.

‘So no Led Zeppelin shirt Y/N. You’re our supporter now.’ He said with a semiserious face. You laughed at that, earning yourself an annoyed look from the professor. You sat up straight and tried focusing on the lecture again.

‘Cell devision in plants is limited to specific regions. In plants it’s the meristems that accounts for growth lengthwise upwards and downwards.’

You yawned but started scribbling down notes again. 

----------

That evening you stood in front of your closet deciding what to wear. Ally was laying down on your bed, providing you with advice. She was coming too but was too lazy to try out several options, having already stuck with sky blue pants and a white T-shirt.

‘What do you think of this?’ You asked while staring at yourself in the mirror. You were wearing pink flared jeans with a white embroidered blouse.

‘Definitely maybe.’ Ally said, her chin resting in her hands.

‘Hm-hm.’ You agreed, changing into a different outfit. Denim jeans this time with a faded peach top.

‘Too plain.’ She stated. You looked at yourself in the mirror.

‘Maybe with a different top?’ You proposed and changed it for a bright pink, very revealing lacy tank top.

‘Too slutty.’ Ally said, shaking her head.

‘Yeah I see what you mean. I kinda like it though.’ You said, and put it on the definitely maybe pile. ‘Let’s try another one.’ You started to get out of the jeans and into a navy floral dress that tied closely around your waist.

‘Love it.’ Ally nodded in approval. ‘This is the one.’ You turned around looking at the back. It truly was pretty, with pink and white details, tight at the waist and flowy from the hips down.

‘Okay.’ You agreed and got into some red clogs that tied around your ankles. ‘Let’s go then. Ready?’

‘Ready as ever.’ She answered getting up from the bed.

You grabbed a thick jacket and went outside to wait for Roger who was far too late as per usual. Just as you started to get annoyed he pulled up at the driveway.

‘Hello there ladies, wanna go for a ride?’

He was wearing demin jeans, white sneakers and a silky red jacket with pink flowers. It was a complete mismatch but suited him nonetheless.

Ally got in the backseat so you got in front.

‘You are late. Again.’

‘Well hi to you too.’ He said, then added: ‘This isn’t a date is it. I’m allowed to be.’

‘Being my friend doesn’t give you that privilege.’ You said. ‘Plus I’m sure you’d be late at a date too.’

‘Oh darlin.’ His face was dead serious. ‘I wouldn’t be.’ He looked at you with such an intensity it made you oddly uncomfortable. You just pulled up an eyebrow.

‘Well go on then, drive.’ He let his eyes linger on your face for a second longer before giving a quick nod and starting the engine.

When you arrived it was almost seven so Roger had to rush backstage. ‘Good luck.’ You said, giving him a hug and quickly tried fixing his messy hair.

‘Thanks, join me and the boys for a drink after?’

‘Sure thing. We’ll cheer at you from the audience!’ You and Ally went inside as Roger got to the back. It was quite a large space, fitting at least a hundred and fifty people. The place was already packed and it was extremely hot compared to the cold outside. You and Ally got drinks and made your way through the crowd to the front stage. You sipped at your drink and waited for them to come on which didn’t take long. Brian came in first, getting cheered by the audience. Then in came Roger, waving his drumsticks in the air. You could hear all the girls screaming. Tim, the lead singer entered last and walked to the front of the stage grabbing the microphone.

‘Yesterday my life was in ruin, now today I know what I’m doin.’ He started. Everyone cheered. Your eyes shifted from Tim to Roger in the back who was feverously banging his drums. You liked watching him like this. Completely in his element and in the moment, steady rhythm, slightly pouted lips. The band was clearly also affected by the heat, maybe even more so by the physical exercise and warm stage lights. You could see the sweat rapidly gathering on Rogers skin, his long hair starting to stick around his face.

‘Shall we get some air?’ Ally asked after a while, wiping her forehead with the back of her hand. ‘It feels like I’m in the fiery pits of hell.’

‘Alright.’ You agreed and followed her through the crowd to the entrance. Suddenly you recognized a familiar face. It was unmistakably Christina. Rogers crush Christina. She was wearing a crop top and a short skirt showing almost her entire body. She was in the same classes as you so she recognized you and gave you a smile.

‘Cool to see you here!’ She shouted in your ear as though it was more self-evident she was there than you. ‘Do you like it?’

You didn’t really feel like doing the small talk thing with her, but as she was Rogers crush you decided to make a bit more effort. She didn’t seem too bad.

‘Yeah, they’re wonderful.’

‘Can I ask you something, Y/N?’

You were surprised she knew your name. ‘Of course, ask away!’

‘Do you think Roger fancies me? He’s been staring at me from the stage this whole time!’

You were surprised she was so upfront and couldn’t help but laugh. ‘Oh darling, I am positively sure he won’t be able to see you from that distance with his blind ass.’ You said. Then added: ‘But yeah, I think he might!’

‘Oh.’ She laughed a little embarrassed. ‘But.. so you think he does like me then?’

‘Yeah.’ You nodded. ‘I think so.’

‘Thankyou Y/N.’ She was positively beaming. It gave you mixed feelings but you gave her a smile nonetheless. You didn’t want to be the one standing in the way of those two. If there had ever been anything between Roger and you, in whatever form, it would’ve already happened right?

You followed Ally outside and thankfully breathed in the fresh cold air. But only for a second though, as you started to freeze in mere seconds in your cold dress. You jumped up and down to keep warm. ‘Wanna go inside again?’ You asked, wrapping your arms around you own body.

Ally nodded and followed you inside. The band had started their last song and looked exhausted but happy. When they finished the crowd erupted into loud cheers and whistles. You climbed on a wooden chair at the bar and screamed the loudest, fulfilling you job as their personal supporter. They walked to the front of the stage and bowed, taking in the craziness of the crowd. When they left the stage you took Ally’s arm and dragged her backstage feeling privileged you could just do so.

‘You were amazing!’ you cried out flying into Rogers arms who had to steady himself by the sudden weight thrown at him.

‘Thankyou love.’ He said, a bright look in his eyes. He smelled a little like sweat but you didn’t really mind.

‘Great crowd you were. Tasteful energy. Want a beer?’ He asked. You nodded.

‘You too Ally?’ He asked her and she nodded as well, clearly intimidated by the band.

‘There is someone in the audience for you by the way, Rog.’ You threw in casually, taking a sip from the glass beer bottle.

‘What, who? Not my mom is it.’

‘No, no. It’s Christina.’ You said, carefully reading his reaction.

‘You are kidding me.’ He said, genuinely surprised.

‘Nope. Go look for yourself.’

‘But I wanted to celebrate with you first.’ He said, which surprised you a little.

‘Don’t feel obligated, I’ll wait for you. Go talk to her before she’s gone.’

He seemed to hesitate a little so you gave him a reassuring smile. ‘Go before she’s gone.’ You said. And with that Roger was out. You were doing the right thing, you thought. Why did it feel so wrong then? After a while you decided to take a look and opened the door. There was still a vast amount of people lingering in the space so it was hard to find Roger at first, but then your eyes found him, standing at the back of the bar, talking with the girl. He had been with girls, you knew that. He had kissed more than you and you knew he wasn’t a virgin anymore, but you had never seen him with one yourself, having only heard about them.

You knew you were peeking and you shouldn’t be doing it, but your eyes were glued to him and Christina as she leaned forward and kissed him. 

Next part

 TO BE CONTINUED! 

@white-queen-walks, @fics-for-my-heart, @midnightloversville, @killerqueenbucky, @fallinginlovewithwhereyouare, @about-aphrodite, @daarkdreamy, @bulsaratheopera, @notsoinnocent13, @int0-you, @fortuneboldlyfavors, @chaoticjasontoddinsoup, @rogahtaylahthedrumah, @notborednorstressed, @bensroger, @sleeping-bobcat, @mercuriangel, @juliet-taylor

[thecrownnet]

From dressing Princess Margaret for illicit motorbike scenes to kitting out Jackie O. to meet the Queen, The Crown’s Season 2 costume designer Jane Petrie talks V.F. London through the process of dressing some of the most iconic characters of the 20th century.

The Crown: Season 2 is out now on DVD & Blu-ray

Royal Wedding: Princess Margaret

This dress—a copy of Margaret’s wedding dress—was made in a week and went on without a fitting (we didn’t have time to do it any other way). It’s iconic, so there was no point in changing it, we just needed to try and capture the details accurately. We used the same quality material to capture the weight and the feel. That’s really the luxury of working on this series. There’s never enough time or enough people, but you do have enough cloth! Aside from this dress, there aren’t as many copies in The Crown as you might imagine: we only did it when it felt right. More often we’d take the spirit of what’s real and adapt it for the scene, working closely with the show’s royal advisor, Major David Rankin-Hunt, who was on set all day to answer any questions about royal style and etiquette.

Street Style: Princess Margaret

I worked closely with Vanessa Kirby on Margaret’s wardrobe; she would send images and inspiration through all the time. This is Margaret’s coat for her motorbike scenes with Tony Armstrong-Jones. After I ordered the wool, it sat in the workroom for a long time before I worked out where to use it. We needed to create a second coat for her stunt double for the riding sequences but, by the time we’d decided to use it here, the company that made it had sold out. They only had the same fabric in orange so we painted the stripes on top. There was something in the dye, though, as the orange wool kept sucking it in, so by the end of the day it was nearly gone. We had to send it back to the dye workshop to be repainted at the end of every single day. Vanessa is wearing the real wool and real check pattern here but the stunt double’s coat changed colour over the course of the day.

In Conversation: Prince Philip and Queen Elizabeth

Philip is an immaculate dresser, so I really enjoyed designing for him. Matt Smith’s outfit here is a direct copy of the his naval uniform, and Elizabeth’s handbag is hilarious against all of that insignia. She’s wearing what we called her palace daywear. We built a wardrobe for each of her residences—one for Buckingham Palace, Balmoral and Sandringham. Generally speaking, if you’ve done the research and always try to stay true to character, you don’t necessarily have to think about how each person’s outfit works together in a scene—it tends to do it for you, and the story tells itself. That happened all the time with Elizabeth and Margaret. I didn’t need to consciously think “Let’s make them clash or be the opposite”: they just are.

Dance-off: Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip

This dress was made for an episode in which the Queen goes the ballet. When one of the scenes was cut, all we saw of it was the shoulder straps as she sat in the box. Determined to get it on camera, I rescheduled it into this scene where she dances. With its spiral embroidery and fluid motion, it has become one of the iconic looks in the series.

The Cold Shoulder: Princess Margaret and Tony Armstrong-Jones

Everything in this scene leads up to Tony pulling Margaret’s shoulder strap down for the famous photograph, so we had to work backwards from that action. We needed enough softness in the drape of the shoulder that it would be a smooth reveal but wouldn’t give away the impression of her bare shoulder beforehand. The soft drapery of the shoulder dictated the rest of the dress.

Transatlantic Tidings: Jackie O and Queen Elizabeth

This scene showed the contrast between Elizabeth and Jackie. Jackie’s outfit is similar to a Dior one she wore in real life but we put a drape on the back because we knew it would be seen from behind, so we wanted some interesting detail for the camera. We had to make the shoulder wrap in a rush as we only decided on the day that she needed one. I ran up to Elstree Studios at lunchtime and made it. It’s not as well cut as the dress but I think we nearly got away with it!

Elizabeth’s dress is featured in several forms throughout the episode. First we showed the original Hartnell sketch, then we made one for the model in the studio, and next we created this one for Elizabeth to wear, which was shorter and thicker-waisted; Claire Foy is quite padded in this scene. We had fun with the three, seeing how the original sketch, which showed an immaculate, long, willowy figure, became the version on the model, which is nearly there, and then finally this version she wears here—which doesn’t quite hit the mark, especially compared to Jackie in her Paris style.

The Icon: Jackie Kennedy

One of the great pleasures of designing this season was getting the chance to dress some of the most iconic women of the century, including Jackie Kennedy. All of Jackie’s costumes started in research but Jodi Balfour’s figure is slightly different, so we had to make adjustments and changes for her. This is very similar to a real Jackie outfit but she would have worn it with white gloves. We went for black to add a bit more drama; it just felt right and finished it off well.

Slumber Party: Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret

Here we see the contrast again between the two sisters. As I said before, this happened repeatedly with them. Whenever you dressed them appropriately for whatever they were doing and put them in the same room with each other, the story told itself. I didn’t have to think “Elizabeth’s in pink so I’ll put Margaret in a dark, bold, edgy contrast.”

[ace-alex-art]

Could you tell me a bit about the egos? (Im new)

Oh, hi! Welcome! Yes, of course! Or at least I can try to...

So I’m gonna just talk about the Septics (Jacksepticeye’s egos) because those are the ones that are mainly talked about here, but if ya want me to talk about the Ipliers (Markiplier’s egos) I definitely can do that for ya!

We’ve got the main “official” egos which all have had at least one of their own videos where they’ve actually appeared in. So this would be Anti/Antisepticeye, Chase Brody, Doctor Schneeplestein, Jackieboy Man, Marvin the Magnificent, and technically Jameson Jackson I think that’s his official name (also called JJ or Dapper)

Anti is the glitchy demon guy who always sets the community on fire. His first appearance was in one of Jack’s videos when he was playing FNAF sister location. He’s got an obession with knives and murder. He wears all black and has gauges. He writes/talks in zalgo text. I personally see him as the oldest of the septics, but that’s a personal thing

Chase Brody is a like vlogger/youtuber. He was created in a video called BroAverage which Jack made as a parody of DudePerfect. There isn’t very much information that is canon for him, but he has/had a wife named Stacy and he had kids. He’s known for throwing tea bags and having a nerf gun. At the end of his video he “pretended” to shoot himself with his gun. And some people have head canons that that was an attempted suicide. He also wears a snapback that is grey and has a red skull on the front and has like a red geometric pattern on the flip side of the lid. That’s all the “official” information that we have on him or at least all that I can think of.

Doctor Schneeplestein is a doctor. That’s kinda obvious... If I remember correctly, I believe he is actually a surgeon but either way he has his own 100% real doctor certificiate. He is German and has an accent. He is a bit off his hinges but he does feel guilt over losing patients. He tried his best to save Jack during bioshock inc. Anti tries to get him to strangle himself with his headphone cord. Uhhh I can’t remember what specific video he first shows up in. I’m probably forgetting a few more things, but hopefully others can help with it.

Jackieboy Man is a superhero. He wears a red suit and a blue eye mask. I don’t think he has any official super powers, so it can vary from person to person. Umm when he appeared to play the south park the fractured butt whole, his character was trans (polygender pansexual to be specific). Cause of that there are quite a few people who head canon Jackie as being trans (myself included). He’s trying his best.

Marvin the Magnificent! He’s a magician! He appears in one of Jack’s power hour videos. (In the video) he wears a blue shirt, a black cape, and a cat mask that he decorates himself. There isn’t much about his character except that from the video he doesn’t appear very good at magic tricks. There’s a bunch of head canons floating around out there, but I’ll briefly tell ya some of mine: he almost always wears his mask because he has scars on his face around his eyes, he has severe depression and anxiety, forgets to eat or sleep if he gets too into learning a certain magic trick/spell, he has issues with self harm, intrusive thoughts, and low self esteem

Then there’s JJ. So he’s kinda a weird one. He does have his own video, but it was a video with Anti. It was the jacksepticeye silent movie video. Again there isn’t like any information for him except the fact that he doesn’t talk. He’s mute! And he dresses very well and has a mustache. So again there’s a bunch of head canons for this lovely guy too. Mine currently is that he uses sign language to communicate most of the time, but he will write stuff down as well. He teaches the other egos sign language.

The other egos that we’ve talked about on here are some “unofficial” egos. Basically they’ve never had a video and are entirely created by the community. This would include Robbie and there are quite a few others that fall into this category, but I don’t think they’ll really show up here. So I’m not gonna talk about them right now, but if they do then I will definitely let ya know!

So Robbie is the lovely purple haired striped shirt zombie! He was created entirely by the community solely from a thumbnail from, I believe, a PUBG video of Jack’s. There’s nothing canon for him at all, so this is basically just my head canons about him. He is a soft boy who cares about all the other egos. He has an attraction to animals and they surprisingly like the purple boy. Even though he is a zombie, I don’t think he rots or like smells of decay. He loves to hug and cuddle. I like to think that he stims which is part of why he loves cuddling so much because for him it is a pressure stim. He sometimes falls apart and has to be sewn back together. He is the one who normally knows when Marvin isn’t feeling well or when something is wrong with him. His speech is a bit broken because his mind is kinda like that of a child’s. He uses sign language frequently because it’s faster and easier to express his thoughts. He is terrified of being alone, so he always needs to be near at least one of the others. Overall he is a very good boy who is trying his best

I dunno if that helps at all, but I hope it does at least slightly!

[lostmemoriies-a]

frances isn’t jealous . really . she isn’t .

well , okay , maybe she is . but just a little bit . it’s just not fair , though . not fair that jack gets to have a bunch of friends , friends who are cool and popular and frances is stuck . she’s stuck with no friends . jack was really her only friend . it’s sad to think that she’s a fucking junior in high school , her and her brother having turned seventeen just a few days ago , and she has no friends .

it’s halloween and normally frances would be ecstatic . it had always been her favorite holiday . she loved getting to pretend that she was someone else , someone who was happy and confident , for just one day . jack had always hated halloween though . which is why it doesn’t make sense to her that she’s having the worst time while jack is having fun .

this halloween party that thomas fucking jefferson has thrown every year since the seventh grade has been shit . frances had never really had fun at his halloween parties before . but they had been bearable because she’d have her jacky at her side . they’d make fun of drunk girls loudly singing karaoke together . but this year is different . since her brother got on the baseball team , he’s changed . he’s been hanging out with the other guys on the team . hanging out with jocks   (   it’s kind of a slap in the face because they used to make fun of the self - absorbed jock assholes at their high school .   ) . he’s been distant as hell . hadn’t had time for her anymore . it was always the guys this , the team that . but that was okay . frances wasn’t jealous .

barely twenty minutes into the party , frances locked herself in the bathroom and slid down the door to hug her knees tightly to her chest . she felt terrible . her and jack would always go costume shopping together . and she had stupidly waited until the night before , hoping that maybe that he hadn’t gotten a chance to go to the halloween store yet so they could go together like every other year . but he had already bought a costume , coordinated with the other guys on the baseball team . they were all dressed as fucking marvel characters . it made frances want to hate marvel , but she couldn’t - her , jack , and mom had seen pretty much every marvel movie on opening night together . and frances wasn’t wearing a costume . what a kick to the gut . it was like they changed fucking places , jack loving halloween and frances hating it now . she was wearing her favorite t - shirt , the one with the skeleton ribs on it , with a black and white striped thermal shirt on underneath .

frances wasn’t quite sure , but she’s pretty sure that she was having a panic attack . isn’t that great ? having a panic attack in the bathroom of a virtual stranger at the biggest party of the fall ? if anyone found out , she’d be ruined . at least she could blame the red eyes from crying on weed . that would be believable .

she crawled away from the door and climbed into the bathtub . frances thought that maybe if she was further from the door , then no one would hear her cry or talk to herself   (   she had this habit . whenever jack wasn’t there to talk her through panic attacks , she’d just talk to herself . just another thing that would ruin her if anyone found out .   )

“   i could stay right here or disappear and nobody would even notice at all ,   “   frances begins softly , eyes shut tight to try and stop tears from falling . it doesn’t work though .   “   i'm a creeper in a bathroom 'cause my jacky kinda left me alone .   “   she sniffles and shakes her head angrily for a moment .   “   but you know what ? i'd rather fake pee than stand awkwardly , or pretend to check a text on my phone .   “   she’s rubbing hard at her eyes now , throat closing up a bit , chest hurting from all the heaving .   “   everything felt fine when i was half of a pair . now through no fault of mine , there's no other half there .   “

frances silences herself when she hears someone outside of the bathroom . it’s just some drunk girl , though , someone singing along somewhat nicely to the music thumping throughout the house , despite the owner of the voice being completely shitfaced . she thinks it might be maria lewis . girl had a set of pipes on her that frances would kill for . but frances was okay with being perfectly mediocre .

she lets out a breath of relief when the footsteps from the girl retreat , probably off to get some more beer . whatever . frances didn’t care .   “   now i’m just frances in the bathroom at a party . i forget how long it’s been since jack wanted to spend time with me .    “   she hears a knock at the door , sitting up with wide eyes .   “   no , you can’t come in ! ! !   “   whoever it was , they muttered a small   ‘   damn , fine then   ‘   and walked away . jesus , frances felt like she was going insane now .

“   i'm waiting it out 'til it's time to leave . and picking at grout as i softly grieve . i’m just frances who you don’t know , frances flying solo , frances in the bathroom by herself !   “   the first part is kind of directed towards jack . she knows he’s not there for her to yell at , but it feels good . after all , it feels like they don’t know each other anymore . it sucks . it really fucking sucks . but she can’t do shit about it , she can just wait it out , hope he’ll come to his senses soon .

“    i am hiding , but he's out there , just ignoring all our history . memories get erased , and i'll get replaced with a newer , cooler version of me  .   “   frances gets kind of choked up at the thought . it seems plausible though . there’s probably a guy on the baseball team who has a sister . a sister who looks kind of like frances , but much cooler . frances wouldn’t blame jack , if he left her for that girl .

“   i half regret the beers .   “   frances finds herself mumbling , rubbing at her eyes , letting out a half laugh . she’s kinda glad she had so much already because her anxiety would be killer if she didn’t have some sort of buffer .   “   as i choke back the tears , i’ll wait as long as i need . won’t come out ‘til my face is dry . or i could just blame it on the weed ! everyone would believe that in a fucking heartbeat !   “   frances clambers out of the tub now , stumbles over to the sink . she leans on the counter and glares at her reflection .

as she looks at herself , she realizes that she hates everything about her appearance . her eyes are too big . her lips are too chapped . her nose looks weird . her hair’s frizzy as hell . it’s pulled back into a messy bun , but it doesn’t help at all . and her freckles . god , don’t even get her started on her goddamn freckles . there’s far too many of them . she thinks it makes her look stupid , like she’s got specks of dirt all over her face . she spits at her reflection .

“   it sucks you left me here alone ,   “   frances says softly . she looks similar enough to jack that she can pretend that she’s yelling at him instead of her own tired face .   “   you left me in this stupid fucking teenage battle zone by myself .   “   she shakes her head , more tears flowing . she thought that she was over this already .   “   i feel the pressure building up . big mistake number who - the - fuck - knows of today was showing up .   “

frances chokes back a sob as she turns on the faucet . she bends her neck towards the sink , splashes cold water on her face . she takes a deep breath to steady herself . she feels herself slip into a better place after that . it’s nice . she’s finally back in her somewhat - happy place . it’s the one she slips into when she doesn’t want anything to do with jack . the one where it’s just her and mom . her and mom spending time together at the park , going to see a movie , anything . she keeps her gaze on the sink , somewhat afraid of looking back at herself .

“   i can't help but yearn for a different time . maybe middle school ? shit was pretty good then . maybe before we even started school . that’s when shit was still good .   “   frances scoffs softly , looks back up at her reflection .   “   and the present is clearer . and there’s no denying i’m just . . .   “

that’s when she breaks . she collapses onto the floor , curls into a ball and starts fucking bawling . she’s gotten most of her anger out now . now she’s just sad . really fucking sad .   “   is there a sadder sight than . . .   “   frances wants to finish her sentence . really . but she’s thrown into another sobbing fit , throat tight and chest burning .   “   what a heinous night .   “   it takes her , like , five minutes , but she’s finally regulated her breathing back into a normal pace . she slowly stands up , rubbing at the tear tracks falling down her cheeks .

“   i wish i had stayed at home instead and watched some shitty movie on fucking hallmark .   “   the anger’s back now .   “   or , i wish i had offed myself instead !   “   frances is full - on yelling now .   “   or maybe , i wish i had never been born ! then i wouldn’t be dragging jack down !   “   she punches the door hard enough to hurt herself , but not hard enough to break the door . her dad would kill her if he had to pay to fix someone’s fucking door because she couldn’t control her anger issues   (   she needed to go to anger - management classes . maybe she’d look into it in college . if she wasn’t dead by june .   )   “   i’m just frances who’s a loner , so she must be a stoner ! god , what a fucking loser ! frances flyin’ solo , who you think that you know ? !   “   frances covers her face with her hands , screams into her palms before flinging the door open .

as she’s looking for thomas fucking jefferson , she lets herself say one last thing .   “   all you know about me is my name ,   “   frances murmurs as she finally spots the tall boy . one of jacks’ baseball buddies , judging by his iron man costume . she taps him on the shoulder and is briefly surprised to see that thomas fucking jefferson was just talking to jack .   “   hi . awesome party , i’m so glad i came .   “   she doesn’t want to come off as rude , so she relies on pretending - pretending that she was happy , pretending that she had had fun . frances had even plastered on a wide , rather convincing smile . thank god for taking drama all throughout middle school .

thomas fucking jefferson smiles condescendingly at frances before turning back to talk to jack . frances unintentionally glares at jack before turning sharply to exit the house . jack mutters some half - assed excuse to thomas fucking jefferson before turning quickly to chase after frances .

when he makes it outside , frances is already clambering into her car   (   she’s sobered enough to be able to drive now . and they didn’t drive together . it’s weird and abnormal , but they’re not exactly the best of friends anymore   )   . jack runs up to her , grabs her arm a bit harshly and pulls her close to him .   “   what the fuck is your problem ?   “   he says roughly , eyebrows narrowed . if looks could kill , frances thinks that she’d be a dead girl .

“   excuse me ? what the fuck are you talking about ?   “   frances shoots back , free hand coming up to try to pry jack’s fingers off of her arm . luckily , it works , and she stumbles away from her a bit . she’s looking at him the way she looks at their dad now and jack seems unphased . it doesn’t sit well with her , the fact that he doesn’t care that he’s equivalent to their shithead dad right now .

“   you’re kidding . you were being so fucking rude to thomas back there !   “

“   no i wasn’t , i was being polite . i told him that his party was awesome and that i was glad that i came . how is that being rude ?   “

“   polite ? ! you call that being polite ? ! you were fucking dripping with sarcasm !   “   john’s stepping closer to her and frances is flinching . she doesn’t like this at all .

“   so maybe i didn’t have a good time , what - the fuck - ever ! it’s not like you care anymore about me to want to check on me ! fuck you , john goddamn laurens !   “   frances hisses , gets in john’s personal space before side - stepping to get to her car , purposefully steps on jack’s foot hard . she climbs into the driver seat , slams the door shut , and is soon peeling out of her parking space and is off towards their house .

jack found himself just standing there , eyes following frances ‘ s stupid fucking pt cruiser , completely shocked . frances was never that harsh towards him . he knew he’d fucked up , but he didn’t want to admit that he had done wrong . he was stubborn as shit , and so was frances , so he was pretty much resigned to the idea that they’d never be friends again . but he didn’t care . really . he didn’t . if she’s going to be an ass , then he doesn’t want to fight to be best friends anymore .

[houstonlocalus-blog]

Jackie Brown Revisited

Nineteen years ago I interviewed Quentin Tarantino one-on-one in the manager’s office of the Regal Arbor 8 in Austin. Tarantino was about to introduce the Southwest premiere of Jackie Brown. Crammed into the tiny office, waiting for me to finish, were Richard Linklater, Mike Judge, and Robert Rodriguez as well as the theater manager.

Two weeks ago Quentin Tarantino was putting the finishing touches on Jackie Brown. Last weekend he completed what has become a Tarantino tradition – to accompany his latest film to Texas as a benefit for the Austin Film Society.

Tickets, priced at $25, go directly to the AFS, a publicly supported, non-profit organization (with Richard Linklater acting Artistic Director) that gave away $50,000 to twenty Texas filmmakers and artists this year.

Jackie Brown with its tony cast and sleek view of Southern California underlings may be the most A-level blaxploitation film ever made.

As directed and adapted by Tarantino from Elmore Leonard’s novel Rum Punch, Jackie Brown is another instant celebration of cultural phenomena, real and fictional. Jackie Brown encompasses The Delfonics, Cabo Airlines, designer sports apparel, Pam Grier the actress (as opposed to Pam Grier as a pop reference), Acuna Bros., Teriyaki Donuts, countless blaxploitation films; not in that order, and mixed into the most serious crime-drama this side of 110th Street.

Some of Tarantino’s cultural references are there on the table in front of you. Only this time he doesn’t personify them with lines, as may be the case with the Big Kahuna Burger from Pulp Fiction.

“I say to people, if you’re expecting to see Pulp Fiction Part 2, you’re going to like the movie a lot, but you ain’t gonna get what you’re expecting,” Tarantino says.

“People talk about me like I’ve already done five or six films, and I’ve only done two. So now on this third one they can see, oh okay, he’s making very individual films that stand up on their own.”

In the depths of the Arbor Seven, on the second floor, Tarantino sits and talks in a manager’s cubicle, munching on popcorn. Meanwhile the small room fills with chatter and Austin resident filmmakers Mike Judge, Robert Rodriguez and Linklater, all of whom will take part in a general Q&A post-screening.

Tarantino’s dressed in a Late Night with Conan logo-emblazoned polo-style shirt and a black leather jacket, not unlike one that Michael Keaton (as ATF agent Ray Nicolet) wears in the movie. Like two of Jackie Brown‘s main characters, Tarantino sports a Kangol cap, his black with a red and yellow vertical stripe, worn backwards.

Tarantino’s A Band Apart Productions has the option on four Elmore Leonard novels, including Rum Punch, Kill Shot and Freaky Deaky, along with a western. Three of Rum Punch‘s characters, Melanie Ralston (Bridget Fonda), Ordell Robbie (Samuel L. Jackson) and Louis Gara (Robert De Niro), also appear in an earlier Leonard novel, The Switch.

“Blaxploitation movies are like the jumping off point,”  Tarantino says in response to a question about same. But more to the point, Tarantino the director offers restraint when subtlety is required, and provides his actors with the lines and atmosphere that can make a great film.

“Part of it is that this is a film about older people, everybody has age in it, characters are in their mid 40s, or early 50s, like Max. The 1970s was their time,” Tarantino says. “They had promise and opportunity, and now the movie is taking place 20 years after that, and they’re all desperate.”

“The character of Louis is one of the best acting roles I’ve ever written,” says Tarantino. “But it’s not like my other roles, filled with great dialogue. It’s a performance that’s gotten across in body language.” He relates how he was sitting next to De Niro on a plane during the time he was adapting the script. “Here’s the greatest actor around and I’m telling him about body language.”

Tarantino has spent enough time writing scripts and acting on television and movies to have his own method of acting. “Every actor has a deal, there’s different schools,” Tarantino shrugs. “I know how I like to act, and what I need to bring to the role to be as good as I can be. But not every actor’s like that. So, when it comes to directing actors you’ve got to work their way.

“The thing I’m the proudest about this movie, I don’t think these characters walk around like movie characters doing movie things, following a movie plot. For the first hour you just hang out with them. It’s like a hang-out movie,” Tarantino says smiling.

“You get to know them like you do real people. They’re good company. When you read an Elmore Leonard novel, you live with the characters.”

An important part of Tarantino’s script writing process involves listening to records, as well as inspiration from great films. For Jackie Brown Tarantino choose over half of the music during writing sessions. “That’s how I find the rhythm of the movie. Just dive in my album collection.”

One movie role model, notes Tarantino, is Rio Bravo: “Where you have a good storyline, but a small storyline. The movie’s two-and-a-half hours, but if you’re laughing for two-and-a-half hours, you’re not bored.”

Some of Tarantino’s lines in Jackie Brown come from the actor’s real life. Like photos of Fonda as a teenager in a roller boogie outfit, or a scene where she’s watching a movie on TV featuring her father Peter Fonda. “Turn it off,” Melanie whines. For Robert Forster, Tarantino added lines where Max talks about his hair-weave, and how he feels about it. The accolades have just started to roll in for Pam Grier and Samuel L. Jackson in the lead roles.

Other projects on Tarantino’s calendar, as either executive producer or with a writing credit, include two in the From Dusk Till Dawn franchise. In the original, Tarantino played a murderous brother alongside George Clooney. “I think we really worked well as brothers in the movie,” recalls Tarantino. “We had that give and take that brothers have.”

The first one, From Dusk Till Dawn: The Hangman’s Daughter, takes place 100 years ago and is based on the demonic Satanico Pandemonium, played in FDTD by Salma Hayek. From Dusk Till Dawn: Texas Blood Money, helmed by Evil Dead 2 scribe Scott Spiegel, takes place two weeks after the first one, and concerns a bunch of Texas bank robbers who end up stopping at the, you guessed it, Titty Twister bar.

Tarantino mulled over making a movie version of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. at Warner Bros. but is now saying no about that project. He’s also involved on a version of Modesty Blaise, but that he also won’t direct.

In a surreal twist to in-store appearance, the after-screening Q&A with Q.T., Rodriguez, Judge, and Linklater proceeds next door to the cinema at a large Barnes and Noble.

The group stands on a balcony flanked by two escalators and those Barnes and Noble woodcut posters, in this case depicting Virginia Woolf and Samuel Clemens. Judge (who gets the biggest laugh with his Hank Hill-spoken line about Tarantino, “Boy I want to tell you. If you like sodomy….”), Rodriguez, Linklater and Tarantino stand there answering questions for around forty-minutes, just like the Four Musketeers of contemporary cinema that they are.

— Michael Bergeron

Jackie Brown Revisited this is a repost

[thdorkmagnet]

Light of the Sun and Stars Chapter 5: Learning Curve

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: Marco spends some time and gets to know Star’ s other two friends, Jackie and Janna, where he discovers the formers love of skateboarding as well as her dreams for the future. Marco is intrigued and decides he wants a dream too, only question is... what?

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.

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It took Marco a few days to adjust to life in the Butterfly Castle. He spent most of the days wandering around the castle, getting a feel for the place, hoping to keep himself from having to rely on others to get around.

Star spent little time with him over the next couple of days, though Marco knew it wasn't her fault, her royal duties seeming to consume every second of her day it seemed. Though, he did find it strange that despite the fact she was called princess she acted more like a queen, her tasks seeming way too time-consuming and difficult for a mere queen-in-training. But Marco didn't question it, he new very little about Mewman life as it was, and for all he knew he was completely in the wrong. And to her credit, Star was considerate about it always asking him if he wanted to come with, but Marco always refused, to which Star simply nodded in understanding, knowing he had had enough of royal duties for a while. Marco really didn't mind, though, even though he felt himself craving Star's attention and company, he was used to doing things on his own.

Most of the time the two spent together was in the evening, the two making a habit out of watching the sunset, meeting up almost every single day on the high-rise balcony. Marco found the sunset irresistible, loving every second of the breathtaking beauty, though it wasn't the only thing he was starting to find irresistible.

Star, as well, was enjoying their time together, trying to find ways around her busy schedule to see the innocent little Mewman. Somehow, her parents were still in the dark about the boys presence there, the flaming corn field apparently distracting Skullnick from discussing the newcomer in the castle with the king and queen, and Star had chosen to wait for the perfect opportunity to let them know about Marco, just in case they overreacted. For now, he was her little secret and it kinda felt good, she hadn't been “disobedient” with her parents in... well years. And really, there was no reason to get them worked up over nothing, not when they had far more important matters to deal with. And so the days at Butterfly Castle passed by uneventfully, as they all took time to adjust to the changes the hooded boy had brought with him.

And it seemed as if it was another calm, peaceful day on Mewni, as Marco slowly followed a small, rocky trail, its path stretching long and wide as it seemed to loop all the way around the castle. He had stumbled across it just that morning, immediately curious about where this seemingly out of place path could possibly lead to, and feeling a strong sense of adventure decided to follow it, leaving his curious mind to wonder as he wandered farther down the rocky dirt path.

But he didn't have to wonder for long, as he suddenly heard a strange noise a short distance off, quickly running over to investigate, a rush of adrenaline flowing through him as he raced into the unknown. He reached the end of the path, finding himself staring at a very strange sight. The path seemed to lead to a large clearing, with all kinds of equipment and things scattered around the area, some kind of make-shift obstacle course set up there, though for what purpose Marco had no idea. But the most impressive thing seemed to be the large, wooden platform rising high up into the air. It was some kind of ramp-like things, its two sides curving way up into the air, creating a valley in the middle.  To Marco the whole thing seemed like some-kind of strange playground, the question was who was it for?

The boy took a few steps forward, looking around the area, curiously, before spotting Janna a little ways off, watching the platform intensely. Guess that answers that question, Marco thought. He was about to call out to her, until suddenly he spotted Jackie, standing at the top of one of the platform's curved sides, wearing a helmet and pads, a small board with wheels in tucked loosely under her arm. She looked down at the dizzying heights below with a confident smile, hands tucked into the pockets of her shorts, seeming to be measuring some kind of distance from up there.  

Marco watched in awe as she lay the board down on the ground in front of her, it's front hanging slightly off the edge, and hopping on it just as it slid forward off the curved side. Marco felt a surge of panic, as Jackie descended the steep incline, gaining more and more speed as she went, and was about to run over to her, until he noticed how relaxed and controlled she seemed on the moving plank, expertly maneuvering around the ramp heading up the other side, her white hair blowing freely from under her helmet, the single green stripe almost mesmerizing as it was tossed around in the wind. As she reached the top of the ramp's side, she quickly flew over it, her momentum sending her flying into the air, as gravity lost its hold of her for a moment. Marco's mouth dropped open at the girl's crazy stunt, as she quickly grabbed the front of her board, maneuvering her body so she turned in mid-air, doing a full circle, before gravity took hold once again and she was now falling back down to the ramp's treacherous curve. There was a loud screech as Jackie's wheels connected with the hard surface, before she continuing on down the side with no interruptions, as if her weightlessness a moment ago had never occurred.

Marco's continued to watch in awe, as the girl perform trick after trick on her skateboard, Janna watching with indifference as the girl skated across the ramp again and again, barely turning her head to watch her friend streak by. Finally, the girl seemed to have had enough, as she began slowing her speed immensely, before bringing her self to a stop in the valley of the two ramps, kicking the board up, and catching it expertly.

Janna walked over to her friend with an emotionless face. “So what did you think?” Jackie asked, removing the strap from her helmet.

Janna shrugged. “Eh, not bad.” But the two froze hearing clapping behind them. They turned, surprised to see Marco applauding Jackie's skills, a bright smile lit up on his face.

“Marco?” Jackie said in shock.

“That was awesome!” he screamed, pumping both fists high into the air and Jackie blushed slightly, tucking a lose strand of hair behind her ear.

“Thanks,” she called back to the boy.

“What is this place anyway?” Marco yelled.

“It's my training area, Star had it built for me so I could practice!” Jackie explained via yell.

“Well you were amazing!”

“Thanks, but why don't you come over here so we don't have to keep yelling everything we say,” Jackie said, trying to hold back her smile, Janna rolling her eyes at the boy's naivity.

“Okay!” Marco called, before running over to the two girl's, Jackie setting to work removing her knee and shoulder pads while they waited.

“How did you do that?” Marco asked open approaching them, practically shaking in excitement.

“I've been practicing on my skateboard since I was a kid,” Jackie explained, as she continued to remove the safety devices. “ It kind of runs in my family. My parents gave me my first skateboard as soon as I was old enough to walk. They were both pro skaters so the most time I spent with them was when they were teaching me about boarding. They'd buy me a new board every year and then we'd come to Mewni together on my birthday, to see how much I'd improved. Told me if I could skate here I could skate anywhere.” Her voice cut off, as she finished removing the pads. Marco had noticed, as she spoke, her voice and eyes becoming distant and her movements becoming bizarrely slower with every sentence. Though he could feel the air grow thick with tension, he couldn't help but ask the question that was pestering his curious mind.

“Where are your parents?” Marco asked slowly, watching the girl intently for any negative reaction. And, unfortunately, he got one, as Jackie's normally cool face fell, her eyes filling with pain and hurt, as she looked away from the boy, unable to answer his question.

“Same as yours,” Janna spoke up in her friend's place, crossing her arms. Though she was clearly trying to sound nonchalant Marco could hear the slightest tinges of emotion beneath her calm facade.

“Oh,” Marco said softly, looking at the ground, unsure what else to say. “I'm... sorry.”

“Don't be,” Jackie replied, trying to regain more of her characteristic calm, giving him a tight smile.

From next to her, Janna continued saying, “Yeah, that's the whole reason all of us are here. Star lets all the orphans in the kingdom stay with her in the palace, until they get back on their feet.”

“So where are the others, then?” Marco asked.

“Gone,” Janna explained with a shrug. “Moved on to bigger and better things, thanks to Star.”

“Wow, that's really nice of her,” Marco said, unable to help from admiring the blond girl's kind ways.

“She took me in,” Jackie said out of nowhere, her eyes becoming distant once again. “After the accident. She gave me a home. A place to stay. I owe everything to her.”

Marco nodded in understanding. “I don't really remember my parents,” Marco said his eyes looking to the floor before jumping back to Jackie. “At least you always have your memories of them.”

“Yeah,” Jackie said, a small smile on her face as put a hand to the little seashell necklace she always wore. “Whenever I skate I feel closer to them, somehow. Like their not really gone, y'know.”

“So is that why you do it?” Marco asked and Jackie looked at him in confusion. “Why you skate. To feel closer to them?”

“Yeah,” she replied with a small giggle, her voice much stronger. “But I'd probably still do it anyway. I've always loved skating even before, and I've always wanted to skate professionally. It's my dream.”

Marco looked at her in confusion. “Dream?” he asked, not sure what this new word meant.

“Yeah, y'know something special for you to work towards. Something, that despite everything, keeps you going no matter what.”

“Huh,” Marco breathed, deep in thought. “That sounds really cool.” He turned to Janna. “Do you have a dream, Janna?”

“Nah,” Janna replied immediately, waving a casual hand in the air. “Don't need one.”

Marco thought about that for a moment. “Well I think it would be cool to have one.”

“Then what's stopping you?” Jackie asked and Marco looked at her in shock.

“Welllll, I'm not really good at anything,” Marco said, looking at the floor with defeat.

“Aww, come on Marco. I'm sure that's not true,” Jackie said, encouragingly.

“Yeah, your really good at messing things up,” Janna added and Jackie whacked her arm, drawing her attention. Jackie looked to Marco meaningfully, before looking back to her friend, the creepy girl following her gaze to the discouraged boy, before shrugging her shoulders, as if to ask what Jackie wanted her to do. Jackie pointed at Marco with intensity giving Janna a chiding glare, silently telling her to say something to cheer him up. “Uhhh and by that I mean you've got to be good at something.”

Marco looked up at the creepy girl with hopeful eyes. “Really?”

“Yeah,” Jackie said, not letting Janna speak and mess up Marco's mood again. “I'm sure if you look you'll find your better at stuff than you think.”

Marco thought about that for a minute, before he heard a voice call his name. He and the girls turned to see Star, an entourage of servants and royals behind her, waving at the boy from across the clearing.

A smile lit up the boys face as he ran over to greet her, Jackie and Janna yelling their good-byes behind him. As he approached, he was that Star was currently dressed in what Marco referred to as her princess look: a fancy, blue dress complete with golden crown sitting atop her neatly styled blond hair. Marco waved as he ran over, Star smiling at him as she waited patiently for the boy to catch up.

“Hey Star, what's your dream?” he asked, quickly and out of breath. Star seemed surprised by the question, her face the picture of confusion.

“Huh?” she said, raising an eyebrow.

“Your dream,” Marco explained with a smile. “Do you have one?”

“Where did that come from?”

“Jackie and Janna.”

“Ahhh,” Star said, nodding her head in understanding.

“Sooo,” Marco pressed impatiently. “What is it?”

“Oh, umm...” Star began until one of the aristocrats interrupted. “Well obviously the princess' only dream is ruling Mewni as queen like her mother. Isn't that correct, Your Highness?”

Star turned to the regal figure looking at her expectantly, the sea of faces behind him reflecting his own perfectly, before turning back to Marco giving her that same cute, little grin he always seemed to have on.

She gave him a wain smile, nodding her head softly. “O-Of course,” she said hesitantly. “What else would it be?”

Marco noticed something off about Star but decided not to bring it up in case he upset her. “Oh, that's cool,” he said cheerfully, though not as strong as it had been feeling suddenly awkward. “It must be nice to have one.”

“What, you don't have one?” Star asked, she could tell the boy seemed intrigued by it all and she wasn't surprised as he softly shook his head, his eyes downcast.

“No, I'm not good at anything.”

“Oh, come on,” the princess said, lightly punching his shoulder. “I'm sure you're good at something.”

“Maybe... but how would I know?” he asked, looking at her expectantly. Suddenly, Star realized whatever he used to be good at he probably forgot after the incident. This was clearly something he valued, something important to him. And she couldn't stand seeing him torn up over this. But she had no idea what to do to make the boy feel better.

“If I may, princess,” a voice from the crowd called, drawing the two's attention. “I think I may know someone who can help.”

…

The knock on the door didn't surprise the room's occupant as he gently held the mug of coffee up to his lips, blowing on it lightly, hoping to cool it down. He took a sip as there was another knock, this time followed by a muffled voice shouting, “Mr. Candle are you in? I need to talk to you.”

Mr. Candle set his mug down on the arm of his chair taking a relaxing sigh before calling, “Come in.” He didn't bother to turn around to face his visitor, hearing the door open and close.

“Aw, Star,” he said smoothly, finally turning around to face her, taking another sip of the warm coffee. “What can I do for you?”

Star smiled sheepishly at him before replying, “Sorry to interrupt... whatever it is you do here-” she said with a roll of her eyes.

But Mr. Candle immediately interrupted raising a finger in the air and matter-of-factly reciting, “Royal Mewman Research and Development Representative for Butterfly Affairs.”

“Rightttt,” Star said sarcastically before taking on her royal mask once again. “Well, anyways I was told your also a trained counselor.”

Mr Candle's indifferent face morphed to one of surprise and honor which startled Star by the sudden change. “I knew this day would come,” he said in a soft tone, setting his coffee mug down on the table, Star giving him a confused look.

“What would come?” she hesitantly asked.

“Star, I know being queen is a big responsibility,” Mr. Candle began and Star immediately felt her heart pounding in her chest.

“Oh, no,” she whispered in concern.

“And no one can imagine the kind of suffering your going through right now.”

“Uh, Mr. Candle, you don't need to-” she began, trying desperately to get the psychiatric to stop.

“Being the ruler of an entire dimension is difficult,” he continued, ignoring the princess' pleas.

“No, seriously, it's okay-”

“And it takes a lot of getting use to...”

“Please don't, just-”

“But I'm certain that with the proper amount of counseling we can take this negative situation and turn it into a positive situation,” he said, taking his pointer fingers and gesturing them together so they were now crossed into what looked like a plus sign. Star face-palmed, trying desperately not to lose it here in front of him. “You really don't need to-”

“Now let's start by talking about your time a few years ago at-”

“Stop!” Star screamed, panic in her voice and features. Mr. Candle gave her a knowing look that made Star extremely uncomfortable. She took a few deep breaths as Mr. Candle just stared at her, trying desperately to calm herself. “I'm not here for me. This is for my friend.”

Mr. Candle nodded in understanding. “Ah I see and is this friend of yours a princess who's dealing with the overwhelming responsibilities of being a queen.”

Star opened her mouth to reply but a voice spoke up behind her. “I'm not a princess.” Star turned to Marco standing in the doorway with a confused look. Mr. Candle seemed startled to see the boy.

“Princess Star, who is this?”

“This is Marco,” she explained in exasperation. “The friend who I wanted you to talk to.”

Mr. Candle's face never lost its look of total shock as he replied, “It seems I misjudged this situation.”

“You think,” Star mumbled, crossing her arms.

“Well what can I do for you, Marco?” Mr. Candle said, completely recovered from the awkward situation, all smiles once again.

Marco took a deep breath before quickly saying, “Well, I saw Jackie this morning skateboarding on this huge ramp thing and she looked so cool, and then when I asked her how she was so good she said that she has a dream of being a professional skateboarder and then Star said she wanted to become queen, and then I thought it would be really cool if I had a dream too, but I don't know what it is I'm good at and-,”

“And let me guess, you need a little guidance to help figure it out.” Mr. Candle interrupted and Marco nodded vigorously.

“Yes please!”

“Well looks like my work here is done. I'll leave you two to it,” Star said, slowly backing out of the room, awkwardly, keeping her hands behind her back and a forced smile on her face. “You know how it is. Decisions to make, paperwork to sign, busy, busy, busy.” She threw the door open ready to make her escape.

“Oh, Star,” Mr. Candle called and Star flinched, hesitantly turning back to the make-shift guidance counselor. “I hope you will come to me if you have any problems in the future. I'm always here to talk.”

The princess gave him a weak smile, before practically racing out of the room, the door slamming shut behind her. Marco looked at the door suspiciously, unable to shake the feeling that something had been off about Star, though he couldn't quite peg what it was. He hoped she was okay. Marco heard Mr. Candle clearing his throat and turned back to his new counselor. “So, Marco, why don't you have a seat?” he asked, gesturing to the empty chair on the other side of his desk.

Marco plopped himself down in the swivel chair, staring expectantly at the counselor. “So, you can really help me get a dream?”

“Welll, let's start by figuring out what it is your good at.” Marco thought for a moment.

“I'm not sure,” he said, his face suddenly looking concerned. “Did I fail?”

“No, no,” Mr. Candle reassured the boy. “You can't fail this test.” Marco seemed to relax once again. “So do you know if there's anything you like to do maybe?”

Marco tapped a finger on his chin, thinking. “No,” he said, shaking his head. “I'm not really sure if I'm good at anything.” He looked down at the desk sadly. Mr. Candle thought for a second. There has to be something he could do to...

Mr. Candle snapped his fingers, quickly pulling out the drawers to his desk, searching for something. “Mr. Candle?” Marco asked, leaning forward so he could watch the psychiatric.

“I think I might have something,” Mr. Candle explained, riffling through his cluttered paperwork. “Ah!” he said, finally finding the source of his search: a large, black book. He lifted it up with a grunt, before setting it hard on his desk with a loud thud. Marco looked at the title that was currently upside down, “Hobbies: A Guidebook to Life”.

“Hobbies?” Marco read in confusion.

“Yep, I believe this book will make figuring out what it is your good at much simpler,” the counselor assured, patting the hard cover of the book, fondly.

“How's that?” Marco asked, looking the object over with curiosity.

“Well in order to have a dream, you first have to figure out what it is your good at and then you can move on to the next step.”

“What's that?”

Mr. Candle gave him a smile. “Working for it.” He pushed the book toward the boy, flipping it so it was now facing him. Marco slowly opened the book to a random page, sifting through it, reading random passages. He looked up at Mr. Candle who watched him expectantly.

“So what do I do with it?”

“My suggestion, find some things you like and try them out,” Mr. Candle said with a shrug.

Marco looked down at the page he was currently on, a picture of a skateboard illustrated in bright, bold print catching his wandering eye. “Huhhh.”

…

“Teach me to skateboard!” Jackie and Janna stared at Marco blankly, before Marco quickly added, “Please?” He held up his hands in a begging motion, his eyes widening to the size of saucers.

“Why do you want to skateboard?” Jackie asked in confusion.

“Welllll,” Marco started, before flipping a scroll of paper into the two's face, making them lean back in fright. “Mr. Candle said I needed to try different things and so I thought since Jackie is so good at skateboarding she could show me the ropes.”

Janna's look of fear changed to her signature smug smile as she asked, “Want me to teach you how to pick-pocket?” Janna replied and Jackie turned to her with a glare.

“I don't know what that means, but no,” Marco replied, his voice never losing its positivity.

Janna shrugged, “Your loss.”

Jackie stepped forward. “Well, I'd be happy to show you a few things if you're willing to learn.”

Marco nodded. “I am.”

“Then let's get you suited up,” Jackie said, pulling out another helmet and knee and shoulder pads.

“What are these for?” Marco asked as she began putting them on the boy.  

“Safety.” Jackie explained latching the helmet securely under Marco's chin. “This will keep your head from getting hurt.” Marco looked up at the helmet as the rest of pads were put on. For a moment, he remembered the other night when he almost slipped in the shower, his skull coming way too close to getting bashed in to the wet, soupy floor. Maybe he should...

“There,” Jackie said as the final pad was put in place, distracting the boy from his inner thoughts. “Done.” She rose up, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “Ready.” Marco nodded. Jackie laid the skateboard down in front of him and he stepped onto it.

She began pulling him along, holding tightly on to his hands, giving him tips and advice as they went. Marco at first stood frozen in place, looking down at the rotating wheels nervously, holding Jackie's hands with a death grip, but he quickly grew use to being on the moving board, Jackie's words of advice calming him, standing confidently with a controlled smile on his face. “Wow, this is super easy,” Marco said, and Jackie smiled.

“Glad to here it,” she replied. “Want to try it on your own?” Marco nodded, now confident he had this down.

“Great! Just keep your balance and you should be fine.” With that, Jackie pushed him off, the boy now trying to keep his balance without Jackie's helping hand. Marco's arms flung around wildly for a moment, until he found his momentum once again, standing tall and straight on the board, his feet in the right positions, his whole body relaxed but ready, his-

“Marco!” Jackie screamed, drawing his attention to her as she pointed behind him. “Look out-”

Marco swerved just in time to see the wall towering over his small form, the skateboard helping close the distance between the two, before the world ignited in a flurry of brightly lit colors and shapes that consumed the boy's bleary and broken vision. Jackie and Janna both cringed as the loud smack sounded around the area, quickly running over to check on Marco and the board. He lay awkwardly on his back, the suns on his cheeks having transformed into a spinning swirl, the skateboard laying next to him, upside down, its wheels spinning in synchronization with the boy's cheeks. “Dude, are you okay?” Jackie asked in concern, bending down to the boy's level, cupping his head in her hands. Marco moaned in pain, rubbing his head from beneath the helmet.

“Ow,” he groaned. “I thought you said it would protect me.”

“Well, your not dead,” Janna stated as Jackie helped the boy to his feet.

“That was pretty good, Marco,” Jackie said with an encouraging smile.

“Up until you hit the wall,” Janna added, matter-of-factly. Marco frowned, realizing this was going to be a lot harder than he thought. Jackie picked up the fallen skateboard, pushing them into Marco's hands.

“One more go,” she said and the boy's eyes widened with panic.

“Are you crazy?!” he exclaimed, pushing the skateboard away. He began hastily pulling at the straps of the helmet, trying desperately to get the thing off. “I can't do that again! I-I-I-”

“Marco!” Jackie's voice had a scolding tone to it and Marco was so put off by the bizarre change in her normally laid-back behavior he froze, he and Janna both staring at her in silent shock. She stared back at him, intensely, and added in a much gentler tone, “Everybody falls off a skateboard at least once.” She pushed the skateboard back into his hands, once again. “The important thins is getting back on.”

Marco stared at the girl, then down to the skateboard, then back up to his friend. Her eyes were wide with intensity as they watched the boy's every nervous move. He sighed in defeat, quietly saying, “Okay, I'll... try it again.”

The light-haired girl gave him a proud smile before setting the skateboard back up for him, helping him on. Once he was situated, Jackie quickly said to him. “Now this time, just keeping looking straight ahead.” Marco nodded nervously, struggling to keep his balance on the board.

“Hey.” Marco looked up at the girl, her eyes shining with confidence. “You got this.”

Marco let out a shaky breath, as the girl pushed him forward, at first Marco seemed panicked but he quickly recovered, situating himself on the board like Jackie had shown him, maneuvering the board around obstacles and objects in the way. He was still shaky and unsure, but he seemed rather skilled there on the board.

The two girls watched in awe as the boy rolled around the make-shift obstacle course, turning in circles to watch him go. “Wow,” Janna said, her voice uncharacteristically soft. “He's pretty good.”

Jackie nodded next to her, surprised by the boy's almost immediate improvement. “Yeah, he's a natural.”

“Ow!” Marco screamed, as his skateboard hit a rock, sending him flying off it and tumbling to the floor.

“Well, almost a natural.”

Marco sat up, spitting dirt and gravel out of his mouth, as he quickly removed the helmet from his head. He looked around finding the skateboard laying once again at his feet, its wheels spinning endlessly in the air and he sighed glad he hadn't broken it.

“Not bad,” Janna called over to the boy, Marco looking up to the two smiling faces a short distance away. Marco looked back and forth from the creepy girl to her partner.

“Yeah, dude, that was pretty cool,” Jackie yelled with a smile.

Marco rubbed the back of his neck, shyly. “Thanks. For some reason it was a lot easier that time.” He stood, picking up the skateboard and helmet off the floor, making his way over to the two waiting girls. Marco handed the helmet and skateboard back to Jackie. “Thanks for letting me try it out, it was actually pretty cool.”

“No problem, Marco, any time,” Jackie answered.

“So now that that's over, what now?” Janna asked impatiently.

“Wellll,” Marco suddenly pulled out the piece of paper from his hoodie pocket again. “There are a few more things I wanted to try out and I was hoping you two would help me.”

Jackie took the list away from the boy, looking it over in her hands, Janna coolly responding from behind her, “Ah, why not? Not like we got anything better to do.”

“Really, thanks,” Marco said, sounding generally grateful and surprised at the creepy girl's willingness to help him, wondering to himself if the two were actually starting to become friends.

“Soooo,” Janna continued, taking an unnerving step closer to the boy, the two's fingers almost brushing as she gave him a weird, knowing smile. “How about we add something really cool to that list like... raising the dead.”

Marco face filled with fear, as he took a step away from the girl. “Uhhh, no thank you. That's okay,” he nervously responded, the uncomfortable feeling returning once again. Or maybe not.

“Umm, Marco,” Jackie said, drawing the two's attention to her once again. “How many things are on here?”

“Just whatever sounded cool,” Marco replied, as Janna stepped over so she could read the list from over her friend's shoulder.

“Skateboarding, archery, karate, ping pong, mountain climbing,” Janna skeptically read. She looked up at the boy. “Geez, How long is this list?”

Just then, the list unfolded fully, spreading out across the floor, Marco having to move out of the way to let it unroll fully.

Janna sighed. “Well there goes the rest of our day,” the girl stated with a dead-panned stare.

...

It was now night, the three friends, Jackie, Janna, and Marco, had gathered together in the boy's room after a long day of fun and often dangerous activities. They had gone through the entire list over the course of the day, the boy trying and often failing at almost every activity at first, most of the attempts often ending with something catching on fire, though that may have been due to the fact that Janna had tagged along. Marco had often gotten discouraged, but with Jackie and Janna's support (mostly Jackie's) the boy had tried again and again finding the task's easier the more he did them, something just clicking in his mind.

But now the day was over and the list was finished, Jackie, and her roommate who was currently peeking over her shoulder, currently had her face buried in the paper, silently tallying up the points in her head. The boy hovered around them, waiting impatiently for the girl's to give him their results, practically bobbing up and down with excitement. “Soooooooo,” Marco said, leaning in closer and closer to the two, looking at them expectantly. “What does it say? What am I good at?”

“Umm,” Jackie said hesitantly, giving the list one last look over before looking over at the boy. “All of them.”

Marco's smile fell, looking at her confusingly. “What?”

“You did good at all of them,” Jackie explained. “Like every single one.”

“Yeah, you always started off really terrible at them,” Janna started. “Like realllly terrible...”

“Which was expected since it was your first time doing all of these things,” Jackie butted in, trying to keep the over-emotional boy from getting upset.

“But then you'd just pick it up almost immediately afterwards.” Janna finished. “I mean, it wasn't exactly perfect, but you did show some obvious skills.”

Marco looked down at the piece of paper still in Jackie's hands, feeling lost and confused. “But... how is that even possible?” he asked, looking around at the two for answers.

Jackie bit her lip, clearly deep in thought. “Honestly, I'm not sure. I've never seen anybody pick this stuff up so quickly.”

“Well I know what this is,” Janna stated, her voice sounding dull and uninterested. Jackie and Marco both turned to her in shock, simultaneously asking, “What?!”

Janna raised an eyebrow at them, saying, “Really? I mean, Jackie's not really from around here, but still I thought you, Marco, at least would know a Trait when you see one.”

“A what?” Marco asked, cocking his head to the side and Janna sighed in exasperation, looking away with a roll of her eyes.

“A Mewman Trait. A magical ability that all Mewmans posses, each specific and unique to each person, yadda, yadda, yadda,” Janna explained in a bored tone.

“Ohhh, right,” Jackie said, finally remembering the special skill the people of this world possessed. “So then Marco's Trait has something to do with his ability to pick up on things so quickly.”

“Exactly,” Janna said pointing to her friend in acknowledgment. “It seems our dear Marco has some pretty advanced learning skills. I'd wager what takes most people months, Marco could knock out in just a few short weeks.”

“So then, what your saying is I can do anything,” Marco said, his eyes widening with every word.

“More or less,” Janna said, nonchalantly shrugging.

“Of course you'll have your limits,” Jackie took over. “But you can pretty much do anything you put your mind too.”

“That's gonna save you a lot of time catching up, right Marco,” Janna teased, elbowing the boy in the shoulder, but Marco didn't respond, looking helplessly down at the list, his face scrunching up with worry. The two girl's stared at him for a moment, confused by his sudden and sporadic mood shift, sharing a look of confusion, unsure why the boy was so upset over this exciting news.

“Dude, what's wrong?” Jackie asked, taking a few steps closer, as Janna backed away from him uncomfortably, allowing her friend to take over this tense situation. Marco looked up at her with distant eyes, his whole face looking lost and hurt. “Aren't you happy?” Marco shook his head, slowly.

“Why would I be? I mean, this whole day was to see what I was good at, to help narrow it down so I could get a dream,” Marco explained, his eyes lowering to the floor. “That's step one. But if I'm really good at everything then that means that I can't narrow it down.” Marco's eyes were wide with terror, his mind spiraling out of control. “And if I can't narrow it down, does that mean I have to have a million dream?!”

“What?!” Jackie exclaimed. “No, Marco, that's not what that means at all.” She put a comforting hand on his shoulder and he gazed at her anxiously.

“R-Really?” he asked, his voice trembling with emotion.

“Of course not,” Janna spoke up, sounding annoyed. “Who told you that anyway?”

“Mr. Candle.”

The two girls sighed in harmony, looking annoyed. “That figures,” Janna grumbled under her breath, Jackie shaking her head in anger.

“Marco, having a dream isn't just about being good at something, it's about doing what you love,” Jackie explained, giving him a reassuring smile.

“But... I don't know what that is,” he said, biting his lip.

“Well, that's the fun part,” Jackie said, with a shrug. “You get to find out.”

Marco looked down for a moment, thinking over the girl's words, unable to help but think of the time he had spent amongst Toffee and the other monster's, how he had desired to learn and grow so much, to get to leave the dark walls of the castle and see what all was out there in rest of Mewni. But maybe his bizarre curiosity had been about something more, maybe what he really been desiring was to learn more about himself and what he could offer the world outside. He had always known that there was more for him out there and now here, among Star and the other Mewmans, he could finally discover what that was he was meant to do. Here he had no limits to the possibilities at store.

He smiled, knowing the girl was right, maybe he didn't have all the answers just yet. But maybe that wasn't a bad thing. Here he could do and be whatever it was he wanted and he had all the time in the world to figure it out. Not that he would be doing it alone. He had three great friends by his side to help him along the way. Marco looked up at the white-haired girl gratefully, knowing that she had given him something that he had never had before... a future.

…

Star released a shaky breath, hunched over her vanity, her whole body shaking and shuddering as tears streamed down her face. She shut her eyes tight, hoping to stop the tears from falling, but they didn't obey her commands, merely streaming down her face anew. She sobbed once, trying to hold herself together, afraid to let her mask break even alone in her room. She look up at her reflection in the mirror with bleary eyes, her hair messy and unkept, her princess' crown laying half-haphazardly on the floor as if she had thrown it, her eyes were blood-shot, her face looking pathetic with the dried tear marks running down them, her twin hearts shattered in half. She sniffed, plopping down in her chair, pulling her legs up to her chest. She looked to her small mirror phone, the text on the tiny screen reading, “7 missed calls from Mom”.

Her hands tightened around her legs, as she softly whispered, “At least you can have a dream, Marco. My days for dreaming are... over.”

With that the girl buried her head into her legs and wept.