Chapter Text
The sun beat down on them heavily, but the cool wind from the lake seemed to balance it out into a refreshing summer breeze. Dressed in a seafoam green swimsuit with a thin skirt wrapped around her thighs, Star reclined in the patio chair on the beach with Moon seated across the table from her, two teacups between them. The former queen kept her gloved hand wrapped around a gold-finished cane she now needed to walk, which Star tried not to focus on too much. Its presence only made her mother seem older than she really was, and was a looming reminder that each day -- each minute -- was closer to the end.
“He’s gonna bury her alive,” Star chuckled as she watched her husband pat down more sand around Pandora, who was lying inches from the tide’s edge.
“She likes the danger element of it,” Moon mused at the laughing child under the sand, shifting her light blue parasol as the sun moved slightly. She sighed deeply, “Now who on Mewni could she have gotten that from?”
Star peered over at her, perching her own pink parasol on her shoulder. “You seem really tired today. Maybe we shouldn’t have come down here.” In the two weeks they had been there, Moon’s sickly periods had been few and far between. So much so that Star had expressed to Marco that maybe she would outlast the previously predicted month. To which he gazed at her sadly, pressing his lips to her cheek whispering, “Please don’t get your hopes up.”
“Of course we should have, darling, I needed the fresh air,” her mother insisted primly, sounding as indignant as a child told to stay indoors when it rained. “Besides, this may be one of the last times I can.”
“Wha -- really? But I thought you were doing okay!”
“I had a very bad night last evening. There was quite a bit of blood involved.” She raised her eyes from her cup to meet her daughter’s horrified expression. “It was the worst it’s ever been. I made your father promise not to tell.”
“Mom, you can’t do that,” Star cried out. “This is the whole reason I’m here. To take care of you.” She shook her head frantically, “I had no idea. I need to move into the bedroom next to yours, so I can be there when these things--”
“You need to stay put right where you are and let nature run its course.” She stared out at the rolling waves on the water as she took another sip of tea. “There’s no helping me, Star. I’m done for.” A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth, “And you don’t want to leave Marco’s bed cold.”
“He’s a big boy, he can deal,” Star snorted, even though a twinge of shame tugged at her heart. She was totally slacking as a wife, meanwhile he had been a saint throughout this ordeal. He kept Pandora entertained when she wanted her mama’s attention, not to mention holding Star’s hand and being her shoulder whenever she needed it. “Hey, you’d do the same if it was my mom,” he had said, and he was right. Star would move heaven and hell to be there for Marco if he were in her place, and made a silent vow to make this all up to him when that hopefully distant time arose.
“Uh-oh, here it comes!” Marco called, sliding down into the sand so he was lying on his side, blocking the incoming tide from washing over his daughter. Unfortunately he underestimated the size of the wave and was pushed forward onto the mound she was buried in. “Oh you think that’s funny, huh?” he coughed, spluttering up water as Pandora cackled at his belly flop.
“He’s gotta be the dorkiest king Mewni’s ever seen,” Star laughed along with them.
“Oh no, your father was worse,” Moon said with a moan. “It took years of grooming for him to have even a fraction of the dignity he’s maintained now.” She paused, a faraway look glazing her vision over. “That’s why I married him. He was real. Not those manufactured men Aunt Etheria tried to set me up with.”
“Ugh, she made it perfectly clear she didn’t approve of Marco,” Star said through gritted teeth.
“That was nothing compared to her reaction when I said yes to your father,” Moon countered. “She was much younger then, and two seconds away from snatching the crown right off my head. The word ‘barbarian’ was said a number of times in front of him, and I finally had to show her my Wand and remind her who was Queen.”
“Oh man, I woulda loved to have seen that!” Star exclaimed, and Moon laughed lightly. Which preceded a coughing fit, and she pressed a handkerchief to her mouth as Star waited with bated breath for her to cease. “No, show me,” she insisted as Moon glanced down at the cloth before trying to stuff it out of sight. She gingerly slid it across the table, and Star could see globs of dark red against pristine white. She swallowed hard and nodded, indicating she understood.
“Your father…isn’t doing well,” Moon said softly. “Don’t let his cheerful front fool you. Once we’re alone, he’s -- he’s simply shattered. And I can’t console him.” She wiped her eyes as tears began to form, “I need you to be there for him, Star, if anyone.”
“I will. I need Daddy, too.” She leaned over the table and reached for her mother’s hand, “I’ll be there. Me and Marco, we’ll do everything we can for him.”
Moon nodded, just as their attention was caught by a baby’s wail. Pandora, now free from her dune, had fallen face first into the sand after running from the tide and began howling. Marco hurried over and scooped her up into his arms, rocking her and making shushing noises as he brushed the sand from her face.
“He’s so good with her,” Star sighed, displaying one of her first real smiles since she arrived there. “I mean, he’s always been great with kids, but he just loves Pandi more than anything.”
“What he lacks as a royal consort, he makes up for as a wonderful husband and father.” Her mother squeezed her hand back, watching Marco plant kisses on the little spade marks on Pandora’s cheeks. “This is why I’m not worried about you, dearest. You have your own family now, you’ve done well for yourself. And you are a great Queen.”
“How do you know? I’ve only been Queen for four years.”
“And look at everything you’ve accomplished. You did the unimaginable, working to bring the monster race back into Mewni’s good graces. Some of us have tried and failed dismally, but you actually succeeded.” Taking a deep breath, Moon pressed her weight against her cane as she rose from the chair, Star grabbing her arm to help her stand. “I have nothing more to teach you, because you have already exceeded my expectations.”
Her daughter’s smile only grew despite tears beading in the corners of her eyes. “You have no idea how much that means coming from you, Mom.” She tightened her hold on her, “Follow me.”
“Where are we going?”
“If this is really the last you’re gonna see of the lake, then you have to do this.” Leading her ever so carefully through the sand, they trekked closer to the water’s edge where the calmer waves rolled in and out like the steady rise and fall of breathing. “Oh, shoes gotta come off,” she insisted, bending down to remove her mother’s sandals one at a time.
“Star?” Marco eyed the two of them warily as Pandora tried to escape his arms, reaching towards her mother. “What’re you doing?”
“Wait…” With a loud rippling of water, another wave rolled towards them and Moon braced herself in her bare feet. With a startled yelp, the icy cold water immersed them up to their ankles, their gasps dissolving into laughter as the water receded quickly like a vacuum.
“Isn’t that the coolest feeling?” Star said softly. “The sand slipping out underneath your feet when it pulls back?” She glanced sideways at her, “Okay, ideally I wanted to take you out on the boat or have you water ski over some rocks, but I don’t think you’re up to--”
“It’s wonderful,” Moon breathed, fixating her gaze on the clear blue sky meeting the turquoise lagoon on the horizon. “These little pleasures I’ve taken such advantage of. It feels…just wonderful.”
“We’ll have to come back out later to watch the sunset,” Marco added. “Nothing tops that.”
“Yes,” Moon agreed. “I want to see all of them. Every last one until my final breath.”
“Yeah, of course…” Star trailed off as her throat tightened painfully. “Of course we will, Mom.” She didn’t even realize she was crying until Moon reached up to brush a couple tears from her cheeks, her eyes as vibrant as ever despite her pallid complexion. And as she held her hand to aid her balance once more, Star realized with a sharp pang that her mother’s arms and legs were quivering with strain.
“I’m so glad I got to do this one more time…”
“My Queen! My Queen, wake up!”
“Mmm, whaahappaaa…” Eyes blinking through the fog of sleep, one arm numb underneath her torso, the side of her face damp with drool against her pillow, Star wavered between the plane of dreaming and consciousness at a frantic stage whisper calling out to her. “Astra?” she deciphered blearily, recognizing the girl with the short bob.
The handmaiden panted heavily, clutching a stitch in her chest from running up two flights of stairs. “Come quickly -- it’s your mother.”
She sprang up in bed so quickly she nearly clocked Astra in the face with her head. “We’re on our way down,” the queen slid effortlessly into her businesslike tone. Astra sprinted from the room, and her heart sank like a stone when she saw the grievous look on the younger twin’s face.
“Marco?” Star rolled over and shook her already stirring husband. “C’mon Marco, it’s Mom. Something’s wrong.”
“Oh no,” he moaned, in distress rather than tiredness. Within moments, they had donned their robes and raced down the two flights to her parents’ chambers. A small crowd of nurses were milling about, all whispering, some shaking their heads as the sovereigns pushed their way towards the door.
“Lemme through,” Star choked out between strangled breaths.
“You can’t go in there,” the head nurse stated, blocking the door with his free arm. His other arm was carrying bundles of rags stained with blood.
“Let the Queen through right now,” Marco growled in the most threatening authoritative voice he had inside him.
“Majesties, the sight is just too--”
“I fought in two wars, one of them when I was a teenager!” Star blasted out in one breath. “I can handle anything! Now let us in!”
“I won’t!” the nurse stomped his foot. “That’s an order directly from your father, M’Lady.”
Star breathed heavily through her nostrils for a moment. “Daddy needs to stop coddling me,” she muttered before straightening her shoulders and lifting her chin. “As Queen of Mewni, I command you to let me through this door immediately.”
The nurse sucked in his lower lip indignantly, just as another sharper voice piped up. “Are you disobeying a direct order from Her Majesty?!” They whirled to see Manfred striding up, pointing a finger at the built man’s chest. “Open that door!”
“A thousand pardons,” the nurse lowered his head, stepping aside so Star and Marco could barge into the bedroom. It was dimly lit with only a few candles when the door clicked shut behind them, the room hardly quiet between the frantic undertones of River, the two doctors beside him, and the shallow ragged breathing from the bed.
“Mom?!” Star cried, flying across the room to kneel beside where Moon lay with her long periwinkle hair loose and damp with sweat, gasping for air like a fish out of water, her eyes bulging up at the ceiling as if not really seeing it, and her chin streaked with dried blood.
“Star--?”
“How could you keep this from her?” Marco shot at River as he crouched beside his wife. “Why didn’t you tell her it was this bad? She’s your daughter!”
“I never wanted her to see her mother like this!” River exclaimed brokenly, clutching Moon’s white sweaty hand to his chest. He gasped as her head shot up from the pillows, only to cough out another gurgling stream of deep crimson.
“Oh my G--” Star turned her face into Marco’s chest, shaking like a leaf. They had seen troops blasted to bits, limbs shredded, gaping open wounds and decaying carcasses before many times. But this was the woman Star had loved and idolized her entire life, lying there feeble and violently ill, and not one of them could do a thing for her.
“It cannot be helped,” the younger doctor with silver spectacles mused to River sadly. “I’m afraid she may be entering her final hours, sir.”
“Wha--no! Nonononono!” Star blurted out, Marco hanging onto her so she wouldn’t lunge at the doctor and his associate. “She can’t be! It’s only been…it’s…how long--?”
“Four weeks,” Marco whispered dismally.
“She was fine!” she blubbered without a shred of queenly dignity. “She was just fine last night, she can’t--she can’t--!”
“River…?” Moon seemed to have returned to consciousness, her eyes blinking and unfocused on the people around her.
“I’m here, darling,” the former king rumbled, kissing the hand he still had nestled between both of his. “I’m always here…” Every breath she drew rattled in her chest, drops of blood trickling from the corners of her mouth that he wiped away with his handkerchief.
“I’ve made…quite a mess, haven’t I?” she tried to chuckle, but only coughed dryly.
“Never,” River assured her. “Even now, I have never seen such beauty and valor as yours.” He moved closer, letting his hand rest behind her head as she lifted it to his with every ounce of strength she had left. And ever so tenderly, their lips met.
“Excuse me,” Star whimpered, pressing a hand to her mouth as she tore from the room, bursting into tears as Marco followed her into the corridor. Even the doctors slowly made their way out to give them privacy. But they appeared to have eyes only for each other.
“My radiant, undaunted Queen,” River breathed, letting his thumb stroke the diamond on her cheek as her smile wilted.
“You know the real me, River,” Moon shook her head, tears gathering rapidly in her eyes. “I’m frightened. And -- and it does hurt--”
“There there, love,” he whispered, letting her rest her head on his neck and cry weakly into his beard. “Remember the first war of our marriage? I was taken out of commission by flying debris of all things. Wailed like a babe as they pulled the shrapnel from my side.”
“I know,” Moon sniffled, “I was there. Holding you the whole time.”
“And now it’s my turn.” Tears trickled down into his beard as he cradled her, feeling her slender arms wrap around his torso. It had been years since they laid with each other contentedly like this, Moon not being one for affectionate intimacy. How truly unfortunate that such circumstances had led them to each other’s embrace for what might very well be the last time.
“I don’t deserve you, I never have.” Her body seized up against him, and he shushed her until the agony passed. “You brought such color into my grey life…such love into my world of indifference. Because of you…I feel this life of mine, while cut short, was fulfilling.”
River did his best to compose himself as he looked down into her gaunt gleaming face. “Your drive and fortitude, the passionate and vulnerable woman I could see under the mask made you my one and only love. I could not ask for more, nor would I wish it.”
Moon inhaled raspily, “Your vows…from our wedding.”
“Yes well, best to go with what’s tried and true when words fail you.” He kissed her forehead as Moon cupped his face, helpless to stop the flow of his tears. “Whatever will I do without you?”
“Oh River,” she murmured, “you’ll move on, of course. You have our daughter and son-in-law, and our granddaughter. You will never be alone. And I forbid you to remain heartbroken.”
“That’s impossible, Moon…” His face crumbled, anguish cut into every wrinkle on his face. “For half of my heart is with you.”
“My parents never kiss,” Star hiccuped, sitting with her forehead pressed against Marco’s as they stared down at their entwined hands, knuckles pale with ivory and tan fingers tangled around each other. “They’re just not huggy-feely like yours are. But…it was beautiful, and terrible ‘cause they’ll never do it again.” There was silence, apart from the gentle breeze wafting through the open windows, the dark blue of the evening sky brightening slowly as twilight approached.
“Marco, say something.”
“What?” he replied, barely audibly.
“Anything.” Even her most feeble voice sounded desperate, clutching his hands like a lifeline. “You always know what to say. I can’t tell Mom this ‘cause she’s in real actual pain but…this hurts, Marco. It’s so bad, I can’t hold up much longer. Say something so it’ll stop.”
The young king exhaled, his nose gently grazing hers as their eyes fell closed. Usually he did know what to say. Usually Star got herself worked up over things so trivial in the long run that all he had to say was ‘relax’ or ‘breathe’ and she was back to thinking rationally again. Sometimes she became apprehensive about holding court or passing a new law, and he was always there with a confidence pick-me-up. She wore her heart so visibly on her sleeve that she could bawl at the drop of a hat, over anything from her favorite hangout closing to a wounded unicorn they found in the forest. It got so over-the-top that sometimes Marco couldn’t help but find it comical, yet he never laughed in front of her.
Not this time. This was a defeated broken Star Butterfly he rarely saw, clinging to the man she swore time and again she didn’t need to rescue her. In battle, she didn’t. But now she was begging him to save her from this suffering, raw and ugly from deep inside her core that manifested itself in her weeping, so sorrowful that it squeezed his heart into pieces. The one time his wife, his best friend for eternity needed him to make it stop hurting. And…
“I can’t,” he managed to croak out through his constricted throat. “I got nothing, Star. I wish I did. But believe me, your pain isn’t any less real than your mom’s. It's just…different.”
She didn’t pull away, only hung on tighter as tears dripped from the end of her nose onto their hands. “Then c-can you just hold m-me?” He didn’t hesitate for a moment, rubbing the back of her silk dressing gown steadily as she crumpled against his thick soft bathrobe. And still there was silence, choking them speechless in the vacant corridor as the world around them vanished, and they had nothing but each other.
Dawn had practically risen when River emerged from the chambers to find them on the loveseat, Star asleep from crippling emotional fatigue in her husband’s arms. “Dearest?”
“Star…” Marco nudged her awake and she raised her head, taking a second to get her bearings before clapping a hand to her mouth when she saw her father’s face, red and washed in tears.
“No--”
“She’s still with us, but we’re past the point of no return.” River laid a hand on her shoulder, “And she’s asked for you.”
“Go ahead,” Marco prodded.
“W-wait, you--” she stuttered as he loosened his fingers from hers.
“I’ll be right here,” he whispered, cupping her neck to kiss her lips briefly. “Go.” Very hesitantly, she let her hand fall from his and drew herself up before almost gliding down the corridor. As she disappeared behind the door, River collapsed onto the seat beside Marco, running a hand over his eyes.
“What of Pandora then?” he asked the younger man, who had his elbows propped on his knees, staring at the floor.
“The twins have her,” Marco answered without looking up. “They’re real good at taking the initiative when Star forgets to give them instructions.” He sighed, “They’ll bring her down to say goodbye when she wakes up.”
“And what about you?” River asked, his tone a mix of curiosity and empathy.
Marco's brow furrowed slightly at his father-in-law. “Me?” He almost scoffed. “This isn’t about me. I’m here for Star and you.”
“My boy, you cannot possibly believe that little of yourself,” River reprimanded him. “You’ve been a member of this family for years. You don’t have to hold it all back for us.” He took out his handkerchief to blow his nose, and Marco noticed the streaks of blood on the white cloth. And his eyes did dampen at the sight.
“It’s not fair,” he admitted, “She’s an amazing woman. After everything she’s done, everything she survived, for something like this to just…”
“I’ve told myself the same thing countless times,” the former king nodded, clapping a hand on his successor’s back. “Moon was never easy to impress. And you impressed her right away, you know that?”
“As a King?”
“As a life companion for our daughter,” River clarified. “In many ways, that role is more important than the Queen herself. Could you imagine the opposite extremes if either Moon or I had ruled Mewni by ourselves? No, it took the two of us together, as it now takes both you and Star.” He paused, “She told me about the quarrel you two had before coming here.”
Marco blinked, having totally forgotten about that. The Marshlands mediation and the blowout afterwards felt like a million years ago. “We both said some stuff we didn’t mean,” he defended quickly, unable to read River’s tone.
“Who amongst us hasn’t?” the former king said lightly. “Moon and I nearly torched the gardens once during a party, it became so heated. Erm, no pun intended.”
“We smashed an old vase. But I’m sure we’ll catch up to your destructive track record soon.”
“No, you’ll be better than us. You already are.”
Marco placed his head in his hands, unable to look River in the eye. “I’ve never felt so helpless,” he mumbled, his voice breaking. “I can’t do anything for Star, and it kills me to see her like this.” He stopped. Did he really just say that to the man whose wife was hours from death?
River didn’t seem to mind, knowing they were all in an agitated state. “Star is a resourceful soul, who has found strength in every heartbreak she’s endured. Because she is loved. By her people, by myself and her mother, her daughter…and you.”
“I do,” Marco’s voice continued to waver, knowing full well he had been the cause of one of those heartbreaks so long ago. “I always will.”
“That is how you help her.” The older man’s eyes overflowed once more, squeezing his son-in-law’s shoulder firmly. “Love her, Marco. Cherish her. Show her every day that she is the center of your universe. Because someday, she could be snatched from you forever.”
She drifted in and out of consciousness as a nurse checked her vitals, feeding the potions into a vein in her arm. Moon was now unable to even lift her head or swallow, her hair losing its shine, her eyes their ardor the seldom times they opened. It was as if all of the magic, her life force, was being drained out of her, leaving her an empty husk. And Star, who was nearly at her breaking point, could do nothing but wait until her mother awakened again. If she did.
“I am so very sorry, M’Lady,” the nurse, who couldn’t be much older than Star’s own handmaidens, said in her thick Scottish accent. “Me aunt died of the Anemia five years ago. It’s hard to watch them fade. Especially one as powerful as Moon the Undaunted.”
“Thank you,” Star managed to squeak out, as the nurse bowed and left out the back door. Yep, you’re one tough act to follow, aren’t you? She placed her hands over Moon’s folded on her stomach, listening to her every breath wheeze dangerously. Holding on tightly, she remained vigilant as her puffy tired eyes continued to pour tears -- there was no point in stopping them as they pattered onto the bedspread.
Don’t leave me… She prayed as hard as she could, as if her own inherent magic could will her mother back to the world of the living. You wanted to tell me something, you can’t go yet…
Moon’s head rolled to face Star, her eyes fluttering open. “Oh good, you’re here,” she said like they were about to sit down to tea. Star could only nod, and her mother’s hand trembled as it held her face. “Now dear…you’re not going to cry the whole time, are you?”
“I might,” Star replied blankly, practically expressionless despite her wrought features.
“Nonsense. You’ll be prominent in the public eye very soon…because of this. And you are still their Queen.”
“I can’t be Queen without you,” Star’s voice warbled. “I can’t pretend to be that perfect idol they can worship, not now. I’m not strong enough to be the heir of Moon the Undaunted.”
Moon returned the firm hold on her hands as best she could, her breathing so labored it was as if just speaking was physically hurting her. “I will always…be giving you strength. And…you can, Star. You’ve done it so many times--”
“No, it’s not the same, Mom,” she argued, her tone rising. “I could put on that face because I knew you’d be there to help me be the Queen they want. When you’re not there, all I know how to do is be myself!”
“I never wanted you…to not be yourself, darling. I wanted you…to recognize your responsibility…and grow to take control of your destiny.” She gave a wan smile, “And you have. You have grown so much…you don’t need me anymore…”
“Don’t say that!” Star flung herself prostrate over the bed, clutching her mother as she wept. “Just stop saying that. Do you know how much I regret all those times I said I didn’t need you? When we either ignored each other or screamed in each other’s faces? All that resentment and pushing you away? When I was so wrapped up in my own head that I couldn’t see that everything you did was because you loved me and wanted to protect me from making the same mistakes you did?”
She convulsed even harder, feeling weakened gentle arms close around her. “We were supposed to have more time than this. I was supposed to feel like I’m ready to let you go, but I’m not! It’s like -- it’s like we were just starting! I’m not Star the Benevolent, and I never will be! I’m just a stupid fake and a horrible daughter who couldn’t even give her mom the lifetime of love she deserved.”
“You’re wrong,” Moon breathed into her ear, “I cannot…even begin to tell you how wrong you are. I could not have wished for a more…perfect child. Just perfect…for your father and I. You are…my beautiful brave girl…and I love you.”
Star coughed, choking on her own sobs. “I love you so much, Mommy. And I’ll think about you every day.”
“We’re not that different in the end…you and I,” Moon whispered, her fingers combing through her blonde locks. “We rocked the status quo of the Butterfly dynasty…in many of the same ways. We both opened our minds…and hearts to the plight of monsters, we both…took liberties with our magical education.” She smiled, “We both married for love…instead of royal standing. You’d be surprised how…revolutionary that notion is even now.”
Her voice was now so faint that Star had to stifle her crying to hear her. “And so much of…what you blame yourself for…is just as much my own fault. I should have believed in you…from the beginning.”
Her daughter drew a shuddering breath and let it out, the air having been cleared at last. “And look at you now, teaching me how to say goodbye.” She curled deeper, burying her nose in her bosom. “Lemme stay here just a little longer.”
“I’d love that…” Perhaps it was a hallucination, or she was actually asleep and this was a dream. But Moon suddenly felt twenty-eight years younger, holding a small bundle against her breast swaddled in blue with golden curls and rose hearts on her cheeks. Beside her was River, stout with a youthful goateed face, embracing them both. And for what felt like forever, she remained in that moment, the happiest of her life…
The low moans of mournful trumpets rippled with a chain effect throughout the land of Mewni late that afternoon, the likes of which had not been heard for many decades. Mewman and monster citizens alike immediately stopped their daily business, bowing heads, removing hats and dropping to their knees. Parents whispered to their children, who did not understand the sound’s meaning.
The bustle inside of Butterfly Castle ceased, the flurry of chatter dying. Some wept, others stood in reverent silence. Tom stood from his desk, moments before Janna appeared in the study doorway holding Lily who whimpered from the noise. And though they were at odds, he still swept over to pull her close and she let him kiss her cheek -- their minds only on their friends and what the call of those trumpets were saying.
The former Queen Moon the Undaunted had died.
What no one outside of the retirement castle on the lake could hear was the vocal weeping of those three people who had kept vigil at her side until her final moment: River’s howls echoed down the corridors as the white sheet was placed over his wife’s corpse, Marco pried Star’s fingers from her mother’s as he finally broke down, his grief mingling with hers.
And for three days, in memory of a great queen’s legacy, the entire heart of Mewni was broken.
“Gamma,” Pandora pointed down at the still form in the casket, no longer gaunt and ailing but restored to her glowing prime for the public wake. Her face was smooth and flawless with makeup, wearing her diamond crown atop her loose hair fanned silkily beneath her. She was dressed in the midnight blue gown she had worn to Star’s wedding with her hands at her navel folded over a sword’s hilt, the blade parallel with her legs.
“Looks like she’s sleeping, doesn’t she?” Star remarked pensively, holding her baby close as a comfort, letting her rest her head on the black lace collar of her mourning dress. The royal family donned black at the loss of a loved one mostly for show, but frankly Star didn’t feel like sporting her usual pastels anyway. The whole universe just seemed a little bit darker now that one of its brightest lights had gone out.
It had been a long day of relatives and nobility parading in and out, some of whom hadn’t even spoken to Moon since she married River Johansen -- and to whom Star had greeted rather icily at their arrival. But for every false boo-hooing on her mother’s behalf she had to put up with, there were genuine hugs and tears from Star’s close friends. Pony Head bawled so hard that mascara ran all the way down her neck, followed by a solemn Kelly and Tad, who somehow managed to break up and get back together during the three hours they were there. Alfonzo and Ferguson showed up with more gift baskets than they could carry, hungry for details while still being sympathetic, and Star had never been so happy to see Jackie Lynn Thomas in her life. They sat and chatted animatedly for ages like they were at a high school reunion, Marco eventually joining them. Star didn’t even worry when she had to leave her husband alone with Jackie to greet more people, nor did she flinch when Jackie hugged Marco goodbye and pecked his cheek. They had all grown up, and any awkwardness from years ago had dissipated with time and maturity.
Now it was just the family left, before her mother was finally laid to rest. The High Commission would arrive soon to perform the ritual, where Star would cast a spell to disintegrate the body into stardust, which would then be placed in an ornate urn to display in the castle’s mausoleum with the rest of the late queens. Marco thought that sounded a lot nicer than the rather harsh process of Earth cremation.
“I never appreciated it this much until now,” she whispered, both to Moon’s form and to the child in her arms. “That mother-daughter bond. You never know how much you take advantage of it until it’s gone.” She sniffled as she looked down into Pandora’s face, from her bright blue eyes to her crimson spade emblems. “And I barely paid any attention to you during this whole thing.” She kissed the top of her wispy brown head, “Things’ll be different now, sweetie. I promise I’m gonna do better, and you’ll know that your mama loves you.”
She felt someone come up beside her and knew Marco had returned from seeing his parents off, appearing in his dark grey formal jacket with a black sash. “Your dad’s gone to summon the High Commission.”
“So it’s almost time,” Star nodded, the wand attached to her belt suddenly feeling weightier. She saw him grip the edges of the glass coffin as he peered down at her mother, his brown eyes glittering with tears in the candlelight.
“It’s all…so fast.”
“This isn’t just about Mom, is it?” She brought an arm up around his shoulders, kissing his temple before he turned his head to press his lips to hers.
“You’re gonna be lying here one day,” he rasped out. “And I’m never gonna be ready for that.”
“Marco, we’re not even thirty yet,” Star shook her head at him alarmedly. “Why are you talking like that?”
“‘Cause she just…faded away too quickly.” He brought his fist to his mouth, shaking his head. “I’ve been watching your dad cope every day leading up to this, every hour since she passed. He smiles at everyone, makes small talk -- I think he laughed once or twice. I-I couldn’t do that if I’d just watched you die, there’s no way.”
“Marco…” Her eyes brimmed as she watched his own tears roll down his cheeks. “Look at me,” she pleaded, and he obeyed. “Number one, you might go before I do -- who knows? Number two, you’re gonna be fine because you’re Marco Diaz. Not just ‘the Queen’s consort’ or my better half. We’re not halves of anything! We’re two whole souls bonded together.”
He brought up his hand, resting it in her hair as Pandora cooed against Star’s chest, her eyes drooping closed with her fingers in her mouth. “That night after the mediation…I can’t believe I threatened to leave you.”
“And I can’t believe I made you feel inferior to me,” she said sadly. “I can’t believe I’m making all the mistakes I swore I wouldn’t as Queen -- starting with letting my status corrupt me.” She looked down at her mother’s peaceful face. “You did that, and you regretted it.”
“It takes the two of us together,” Marco breathed out, repeating the very words River had said to him a few days earlier.
“You’re right,” Star nodded, cupping his cheek. “From now on, it’s about both of us. Queen Star and King Marco, running Mewni together just like we’ve done everything else. And if we fight about something, then we won’t rest until we reach a compromise.”
Finally, Marco managed a smile. “Now that’s a decree I can get behind. Your mom would be proud.”
“Your Majesty.” The two of them whirled around at Omnitraxus’ booming voice as he floated into the room, followed by Rhombulus and Hekapoo, River bringing up the rear. “We’re ready.”
Star kissed her sleeping daughter one last lingering time before giving her to Marco, then approached the members of the Commission with dignity and purpose. “Shall we?”
Positioning themselves at the corners of Moon’s casket, a sudden magical surge coated her body like a shield, rippling and crackling like electricity as it flowed through three bodies of immensely powerful entities. Star stood elevated over them on the stairs, the wand quivering in her hand as she watched her mother’s corpse become immersed in the embalming enchantment.
“I can’t…” She looked beseechingly at her father, as if asking his permission to dispose of his wife’s body, while the fear of watching her disappear gripped her heart.
“You must,” River nodded, his face filled with a hybrid of torment and inescapable duty.
Clutching it tighter in her fist to stop it from shaking, Star raised the wand over her head and it began to glow bright magenta. Closing her eyes, an incantation in her native Mewnian like a sort of song or prayer flowed from her lips. And as it reached its peak, everyone bowed their heads as Star’s hearts glowed, the spell spreading from the top of Moon’s head to her feet. Little by little, her form vanished into nothing but glittering dust as the last traces of Moon Butterfly left them forever -- until all that was left was her sword lying solitary in the coffin.
“Goodbye, Mom…”