Star vs the Forces of Evil: The Ballad of Earth-Mewni

Episode 29: The More Things Change

Deep into the woods, in a mostly abandoned hut, Manfred stood idly near a mostly barren wall, staring intently into it, almost staring through it. The wand was held tightly in his right hand. Beside him sat familiar faces; more specifically, it was the group of angry mewmans that previously conspired to throw Star's father, River, into the brig, framing him for a crime worse than the one he debatably committed already. Though they had been rightfully sent to prison for their actions, they were bailed out quickly and retrieved from the clutches of the slammer. Yes, it was Manfred who was responsible for the breakout. But it came with a cost, one that was about to reveal itself to these mewmans.

"So...um...you got, like, food or something here?" One of them piped up, the weight of their situation having not yet slammed onto them.

"Do you know why I bailed you out of the slammer?" Manfred spoke, not moving a single muscle. The tone and vigor in his voice immediately got the mewmans' attention. He was not screwing around.

"Wait...that was you?" Despite the fact that Manfred was now in possession of a powerful magic wand, it was not actually the method of choice he went with to bail out the mewmans from prison. Subterfuge was the name of the game, somehow coming into contact with enough Earth money to bail them out before their own trials, while also going the extra step - this time with magic - to erase their existence from the memories of everyone who would've been responsible for prosecuting & convicting them.

"Who else would come to the defense of you people? You burned your credibility once your sloppy little charade was so thoroughly exposed."

"We was just trying to make those people pay for what they did!"

"Yeah, life was all cozy and simple and stuff before they just had to turn on us and start cozying up to those monsters, blegh!" The second angry mewman feigned vomit to emphasize his point.

"I sympathize with your plight, I truly do. But guess what? Your plan failed."

"So what, we're failures in your eyes?" One could cut the tension in the room with a sword.

"I wouldn't say "failures." Simpletons, maybe..."

"Alright, smart mouth, we're not gonna take this. We're gone." The group quickly collected themselves & proceeded towards the door. They were intent on leaving...but Manfred had other plans. With a flick of his wrist, his wand activated, slamming the door right in front of them just before they could leave. And the door didn't just shut; it shut with such a violent impact that others residing in the forest questioned where the noise came from.

"That's cute...you think you have a choice." In a sinister fashion, Manfred slowly turned around to face the mewmans, an evil grin having crossed his face. The shock & horror on the mewmans' faces gave it all away. This was truly an unexpected twist. As far as they had been concerned, magic was dead and buried forever. There was none of it left. Oh how wrong they were, and this didn't even scratch the surface. "Let's get this straight right away: you don't."

"Hey, what's the big idea, punk!?" One of them loudly yelled in Manfred's direction.

"Excuse me? I'm the one that freed your sorry butts from the slammer. I'm the one that rigged the system so that they've forgotten your little stunt. As far as you're concerned, I own you until I decide I don't!"

The mewman scoffed. That was a colossal mistake. "Own us? Who do you think you are-"

Manfred demonstrated just how big of a mistake it was by using his wand to completely contort the mewman's body. Literally every single joint in his body bent in the exact wrong way. The ear-shattering screams the mewman let out in response caught the rest of the group off guard and even terrorized one of them into a fetal position. There was discipline, and then there was...this. There was ruling with an iron fist, and then there was single-mindedly traumatizing the people you intended to court as servants to your master plan. Manfred was not here to show mercy. He was all business.