Star draped a bunch of her favorite dresses on one arm, then walked back to her suitcase to fold them all neatly inside. Whether she chose to get married or attend college, either way, she needed to do a lot of packing. Normally, she would use a spell to magically pack all of her things perfectly, but she decided to use the time to reflect further on her current situation.
Who else should I tell about my problems?, she thought. Definitely not Marco. Sure, he would probably give excellent advice, but Star didn't want him to find out about her love for him and that it was one of the reasons she didn't want to marry someone else. Star wasn't close enough to Jackie to feel comfortable telling her about it, and Janna was the expert at giving bad advice. One time, when Marco failed one pop quiz, Janna said he should strangle the teacher.
StarFan13 would totally freak out and go on a wild rampage at the thought of Star leaving forever. A few months ago, Star and Marco left town for the weekend on a camping trip with Marco's parents. When they came back, they found out StarFan13 had assaulted nearly the entire cheerleading squad for no particular reason—except that she missed Star.
Wait a minute...Princess Pony Head! Star could tell her about the marriage! True, she wasn't the best at giving good advice, but Pony Head wasn't afraid to tell the truth, and even though she didn't actually have any, she would always give Star a shoulder to cry on in difficult times. Besides, since they were both rebel princesses who felt suppressed by royal life and responsibilities, she would totally understand Star's problem.
Star hurried over to her magic mirror. "Call Pony Head!" "Calling—Pony Head." Star waited as ringing sounds came out of the mirror. Soon, Pony Head's body appeared on the mirror-screen. "Pony Head! So good to see you! I need to—"
"HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEYYYY!" Star felt her throat tighten. "Oh, no! I got her video-mail!" "Whassup, par-tay people?!", the recording of the loud pony princess said. "Pony Head in da house! I can't take your call right now, 'cause I, like, am keeping ma rep as the Party Queen, but if you leave me a message, I might get back to you! Maybe! If I got nothing better to do! Holla!"
Star took a deep breath to soothe her frazzled nerves as the mirror beeped, signaling the start of the message recording. "Pony Head, its Star Butterfly. I know this is kinda short notice, but I really need you to call me back as soon as possible. Its about why I left last night. Its way too epic to explain over text or a phone call. If you get this message, call me back tonight. I really need your help." She pressed a button, ending the call.
"Star Butterfly!", called Rafael Diaz from the bottom of the stairs, his deep voice echoing off the walls. "Come down for breakfast! I made those special pancakes you and Marco love so much!" Star's sensitive nose caught whiff of the peanut butter and marshmallow fluff, the two most important ingredients in the "special" pancakes. Forgetting her worries for a few minutes, Star ran towards the stairs with a hungry smile on her face.
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Marco dabbed his lips with his napkin. "That was the best batch yet!", he said, grinning at his father. "Right, Star?" She didn't say anything. Her mouth was still full of the moist, chewy, delicious pancakes, but she nodded her head to confirm Marco's comment. "Wonderful!", Rafael said. "So!", said his lovely wife as she came over to the table, carrying a cup of hot tea for herself. "What do my little adventurers have in store for today?"
"No adventures today, Mom!", Marco told her. "I've got a date with Jackie today!" Star swallowed her pancakes. "Wait, Marco...I was gonna ask if you wanted to do something today." Marco's smile faded. "Oh, Star, I wish I could, but...we planned this a week ago, and, you only just asked, so..." He trailed off, unsure how to let her down gently.
"Where are you two going?" "To the pizza parlor." Star's face brightened. "I know!", she said. "I'll come with you!" Marco blinked twice. Star had never asked to tag along on one of his dates with Jackie before. Of course, there had been the Love Sentence Concert, but it was supposed to have been between him and Star, with her dragging Jackie along at the last minute.
But when he saw the happy, hopeful look on Star's face, he didn't have the heart to say no to her. Swallowing his pride, he said, "Sure. I don't see why not." Star pumped both fists in the air, her eyes sparkling. "YAY! BFF triple date!" She grabbed Marco by the arm and practically yanked him out of the house, leaving his parents to clear the table.
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"Why did you let her come along?", Jackie whispered in Marco's ear, being extra careful making sure Star did not overhear. Jackie really liked Star, admiring that she was a badass and a super-sweetheart at the same. The last thing Jackie wanted was for her to get the wrong idea and hurt her feelings in the process. She was afraid that Star may feel like the third wheel on their little get-together.
"She asked me, and she made this really sweet face,", Marco explained quietly, also making sure Star didn't hear. "And I just couldn't say no." "Whatcha guys talkin' 'bout?" Star's sudden presence made the two lovebirds jump in surprise. "Star! Don't sneak up on people like that!", Marco said, dusting himself off. "You nearly gave me a heart attack!" "Sorry, bestie.", Star said. She ran ahead of the two, crying loudly, "Pizza Palace, here we come!"
When they finally arrived at the pizza parlor, Star approached the guy at the counter. "One pepperoni pie for three best-besties!" "You got it, Butterfly!", Harold the counter guy said, immediately gathering all the fixings for a good pizza pie. While he fulfilled her order, she grabbed Marco and Jackie and pulled them into a nearby booth, sitting in-between them, one arm hugging each friend.
"Isn't this great?!", she asked. "Three best friends, eating pizza, just chilling out! We should totally do this more often!" "We should!", Jackie said, smiling at Star's proposal. "We should try to do this as often as we can before the end of August." The end of August was when everyone was scheduled to leave for college. After that, Star and Marco would probably not see their friends until the beginning of June, when they all returned to Echo Creek for summer break.
"I wish you were coming with us to ASU, Jackie.", Star said. "So do I.", said Marco. "You know, I looked on the website, and its still not too late to apply." "No thanks, you guys.", Jackie said. "Sweating out four more years of school? Not for this chick. I'm going to community college, and once I've learned about business, I'm going to set up my own skateboarding school."
"But I promise, I'll text and call and Skype you guys at ASU at least once a week." "I'd never forgive you if you didn't!", Star said jokingly. Marco shrugged. "I guess it could be worse. You could be doing what Janna is. Can you believe she's forgoing college so she can go find a cult to join?" "I think its great that she's making her own path!", Star said in defense of her friend. "And who knows? Maybe she'll join the cult that worships Tom, and he can get her to contact us more often!"
"Yeah, I guess making your path is cool.", Marco said. "Not like StarFan13. Seriously, I'm worried about that girl. I mean, I know she loves you and everything, but she's taking it a bit too far in my opinion. I mean, she's going to ASU and taking all of the exact same classes that you are! And when I asked her what she was going to study to be, she asked you the same question, then told me the exact same thing you said!"
"Everyone has their passion, Marco.", Jackie said. "For me, its skateboarding. For you, its karate. StarFan13's passion simply comes in the form of a certain blonde, starry-eyed magical princess. Speaking of whom..." She turned to said passion. "You excited for college, Star?"
Star felt her heart skip a beat before answering. "Oh! Oh, yeah! I'm stoked!" She hoped and prayed that neither Jackie or Marco could see the beads of sweat forming on her forehead. She felt her nervousness levels go even higher when Marco put his arm around her shoulders. "I am, too! Its you and me against the world! Star and Marco, forever!" Star nodded weakly in response. "Forever.", she said softly, her important decision weighing heavy on her mind and her heart.
YOU ARE READING
Till Death Do Us Part
FanfictionStar and Marco have just graduated from Earth high school, and they couldn't be happier! Well, Star could. Marco and Jackie are getting pretty serious, and he's made a habit of neglecting his other friends, including a certain princess with a secr...
