Work Text:
Blast!
“Nope.”
Sparkle!
“Nuh-uh.”
Huffing through her nose like a bull about to charge, Pandora flung her wand arm over her head and spun on the balls of one foot. Landing in a crouched stance, she squinted at her target -- a stupid apple floating in the air that she was supposed to cut in half -- and readjusted her aim. A twinkling burst of magic echoed in the vast chamber as she sent another spell its way.
“Not even close,” sighed Sir Glossaryck, rubbing his overlarge blue hands over his crystallized eyes, hearing the princess’ yelp as the fruit exploded into sauce. With a quick snap of his fingers, the mess disappeared and the apple was whole again for the twentieth time. “Alright, pudding break.”
“No way!” Pandora barked, glaring at him. “We’re not going anywhere or eating anything until I get this right!”
“Honey, we’ve been at this since four this morning. And this little genie needs his beauty sleep.”
“You’re an omniscient being. A physical manifestation of all the magic in the universe. Ya don’t need ‘sleep’!”
Glossaryck snorted. “Sorry. You sounded like your mother.”
“Then how come I can’t cast spells like her?!” the princess cried out, kicking her spellbook spread out on the floor in frustration. “I’m fifteen and I can’t do basic magic. If I can’t even slice fruit, then how am I supposed to help my parents fight in battle?”
“Yeah, considering how many people across countless dimensions your parents have pissed off over the years, the chances of war breaking out have never been higher.”
“You’re so not helping,” Pandora grumbled.
“I’m cranky when I don’t have pudding.” He opened his mouth and stuck out his tongue, pointing to where the sweet treat needed to go.
“Forget it. No pudding until I slice the apple.”
“Then I guess we’re done here.”
“Hey, wait a sec!” But the tiny blue man had disappeared between the worn crumbling pages of the ancient tome, slamming it shut behind him. Sliding onto her knees, she flipped it back open and pushed the pages aside, backwards and forwards, fanning out each individually as sparks and glowing lights spewed from the various chapters. “Get back out here! You’re supposed to teach me!”
“I don’t ‘teach’,” came Glossaryck’s voice from the front cover.
Pandora hastily flipped there, then groaned when she came up empty. “Fine, ‘guide me to my full potential’, whatever that means.”
“We knew this was going to be tricky from day one.” Now it came from the central Table of Contents, and she quickly backtracked as the voice continued. “You’re only half-Mewman, Princess. The chunks are there, but they’re harder to reach.”
“Spare me the stew metaphor, I’ve heard it a million times.” She sat back on her heels when she didn’t find him there either and took the wand she had thrown aside into her hands once more. The emerald green glossy handle was spackled with sweaty fingerprints. Atop the head was a golden gaping oval with a glittering massive ruby in the center that spun when she flicked it with her finger. It looked like a cool design one would see on a metal album cover when held vertically. Horizontally, it kind of resembled an eye.
Pandora remembered everything from her fourteenth birthday like it was yesterday. Her parents were the only ones wearing genuine smiles, her twin brother and sister complaining about their itchy formalwear while the court regarded her with respect rather than pleasantness. The passing of the torch, the queen handing the most sacred heirloom of the Butterfly dynasty to her eldest daughter, always came with a sort of apprehension amidst the excitement.
But Pandora Butterfly’s Wand Ceremony was like a funeral, or a silent courtroom awaiting a judge’s life-or-death verdict, somber with tension so thick she could cut it with her sword. There were audible gasps when she took it from her mother’s gloved hands and held it aloft. It shifted form to the blood red ruby eye. The All-Seeing Eye. Yet another sign pointing to her future reign as similar to that of the Queen of Darkness. And even though her mother had pretty much threatened to throw anyone who ruined her daughter’s special day into the dungeon, Pandora still didn’t feel much like eating cake afterwards.
“Alright, listen.” Her head shot back up as the pages flipped themselves over until her mentor emerged once again, tucking his hands inside his robe sleeves. “I know you’re upset about the whole Eclipsa stigma. One look at those spade emblems on your face and those old farts head for the hills, breaking their hips in the process.”
Pandora couldn’t help giggling at that.
“That’s why you’re up all night pouring over the book. That’s why you spend hours and hours out of the day trying to force your inherent magic to work. You wanna prove them all wrong.”
“Everyone talks about how ‘advanced’ my mom was at my age,” the princess grumbled. “How she was so crazy and out of control as a young magic weaver, but how brave and powerful she was when she got older. How she and my dad changed Mewni forever. Then I came along and everybody flipped out.”
“Mmm, your mom wasn’t all that,” Glossaryck rolled his eyes. “She had her baggage, just like you.”
“Oh yeah, I heard all about how you practically broke her just to train her.”
“I was a little tough on her,” Glossaryck sang out defensively, “But she needed that extra push, trust me.” He paused. “And your dad didn’t do much for Mewni.”
“I thought you liked my dad,” Pandora raised her eyebrow.
“‘Like’ is a strong word. I…don’t hate him. But he did at least give me pudding when I asked him.”
“Nice try,” she remarked before staring back down at the wand in her lap. She really shouldn’t have been complaining. The “perfect princess” whining over the one thing she couldn’t master right away? Everyone would laugh at her about it, including her friends.
But this is the one thing that matters. Good grades, drawing, singing, sword-fighting, none of that was going to make her a good queen. This was her magic. The glue holding the Butterfly lineage together, and she just couldn’t get it to stick. There were whispers about it here and there, blaming her lack of progress on Queen Star’s marriage to a ‘lowly Earth human’. She hated that such talk about her beloved father circulated under the royal family’s radar -- but at the same time Pandora would be lying if she said she didn’t wonder if circumstances would be different had her mother married another Mewman. Like her father, it seemed like she had to work so much harder to prove her worth.
“Although…it might not be you.”
Pandora blinked. “Wait, what?”
“It could be the Wand,” Glossaryck shrugged, laying on his stomach lazily with his ankles crossed in the air. “It’s been through the ringer over the centuries, let me tell you. Between Eclipsa’s elevated skill level, Moon’s darkest spell…come to think of it, that thing hasn’t really been the same since your mom cast the--”
His lips snapped closed, though his face remained neutral as ever. But the princess’ attention had been grabbed.
“Cast the what?”
“Nothing, it’s not important.”
“Yeah, that’s what they say in all the movies when it’s something really important!”
“You’re a Diaz spawn all right,” the genie yawned, rolling over to pull the pages back over his body like covers, but Pandora whipped them back open.
“What did my mom cast?” This was too vital for her not to know about. Was there actually another reason she was falling behind, aside from her genetics?
“You really wanna know?” He grinned.
Groaning in exasperation, she pushed her hair out of her face as she reached under her bed. Pulling out a large box full of various unorganized objects, she rummaged around until she found it: A full six-pack of chocolate pudding cups.
“Aha! You were holding out on me!”
“Talk,” she demanded, ripping the sealed foil off the top of the first cup. Grabbing it from her hungrily, Glossaryck held it upside down over his head, letting the chocolate dribble down into his mouth like he was eating his first meal in a month. Finally, he flung the empty cup aside.
“The Whispering Spell.” And with that, he slammed the book shut on himself.
“I’ve got five more here!” Pandora cried, holding up the remaining cups. “You know way more than that, I know it!” She stuck her fingers in between the pages, trying to pry the book back open, but it wouldn’t budge. “Glossaryck?! Glossaryck?!”
“Thanks Pony, this is gonna be so great,” Star smiled into her compact phone, pacing the outdoor tea patio. Her skirt fluttered around her calves in the breeze as she placed a hand on her floppy sunhat to keep it from flying off. “No Pony, that’ll kill them. This is on Earth, remember?” Marco looked up from his newspaper in alarm, mouthing ‘What?!’ at her, but she waved a hand dismissively as if to say ‘I got this.’ “Just bring the regular ones…it’s not gonna be boring, I promise…okay, bye.” She snapped the phone shut, “Fireworks display is a go!”
“I dunno what she said, and for the sake of my blood pressure, I don’t wanna know,” Marco rattled off in one breath.
“Oh you know Pony Head, she just wants everyone to have a good time,” Star said, sitting beside him on the wicker loveseat where he relaxed with his legs stretched out. “And I just want your mom to have the best surprise party ever. It’s not every day you turn sixty.”
“Couldn’t we have it here at the castle? Where it’s safer and Pony Head can go as crazy as she wants?”
“King Marco the Cautious strikes again,” his wife teased, and he groaned at the “title” Hekapoo had given him that everyone from the council to the servants thought was just so funny. She leaned over to snake her arms around his neck. “If I just summon your parents here outta the blue, Angie’s gonna get suspicious. This has gotta be as casual as possible."
“There’s nothing casual about fifty guests, two hundred appetizers, a hundred fireworks and a cake as tall as Tommy and Yvette stacked on top of each other.” He smiled despite it all and accepted Star’s gentle kiss, the wide brim of her hat concealing their faces. “But I appreciate you doing all this, it’s really sweet. Especially since Mom’s been kinda down about the whole thing. Getting old and all.”
“That woman doesn’t look a day over forty-five and we all know it,” Star declared -- just as the doors to the patio flung open. A frazzled-looking butler hastily set down the tea tray he was carrying as the king and queen sat up from their lounging position.
“Majesties, Princess Pandora's been looking all over for you,” he panted, wiping his brow. “But it appears she’s gotten into a bit of a tussle with--”
“Give it back, Tommy!” came a screech as a chubby reptilian child sprinted through the door, waving a purple compact phone in the air. His older sister was on his tail in moments, while his twin Yvette brought up the rear, looking thoroughly amused by the whole thing.
“Oooh, a missed call,” Tomás sang out, glancing at the screen as he dodged around his sister. “Who is it, your boyfriend or your girlfriend?”
“Shut up! I’m not dating either of them!” Pandora bellowed indignantly. She hadn’t wanted to take anyone to her parents’ anniversary ball, and now she had two suitors bugging her for a date: the son of the Waterfolk ambassador and the daughter of the Pixtopia Empress. As if wielding the wand and facing her impending royal duties wasn’t stressful enough.
“‘Angelique’ -- yep, called it,” Yvette read over her brother’s shoulder, smirking as she twirled a yellow strand of hair between her fingers.
“Get out, both of you!” Pandora grabbed Tomás’ wrist to wrench the phone out of his clawed hand.
“Ow! Mama!”
“Tommy, stay out of your sister’s business,” Star scolded as she marched over, glaring between the three of them. “Yvette, don’t encourage him. And Pandi, apologize.”
“No,” the elder princess snarled. “Not ‘til those brats get outta here now.”
“Pandi!”
“Forget it, Mama -- it’s no fun anymore.” Rubbing his wrist, Tomás sulked away with his twin, each of them grabbing a handful of cookies off the tea tray before departing.
“Pandora.” Marco approached her sternly, folding his arms over his chest as she stuffed her phone in her pocket and yanked the wand roughly from her belt. “There’s no reason for you to be yelling and flinging things around like that. Now what’s the matter?”
“Glossaryck’s being all cryptic again.”
“I take it back, that’s a perfectly logical reason to be yelling and flinging things--”
“Marco,” Star whacked him on the arm, and he winced as she rounded on Pandora. “Honey, you’re pale and your eyes are all red -- don’t tell me you were up all night again.”
“No…I’ve only been up since four,” the princess confessed, nibbling on her lip as her parents looked at each other.
“Don’t you think you’re pushing yourself a little too hard?” her father suggested. “You’re not gonna be Queen tomorrow.”
“I know, but this -- this stupid thing!” She flung the wand towards the cobbled pavement, but it suddenly halted, hovering inches from the ground. A warm white glow emitted from her mother’s palm as she held it in place, an identical radiance in her heart emblems. With a flick of her wrist, the wand shot into her own grip.
“Not cool,” Star admonished her in a low serious tone.
“Guess I wouldn’t be the first Princess of Mewni who banged up the Wand,” Pandora muttered, leaning back with her hands on her hips like the teenager she was.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Oh please -- everyone talks about how you had so much power in you that you didn’t know how to control it. Heck, you had to go live in another dimension because you couldn’t handle it.” She didn’t know why she was word-vomiting all over the place, whether it was from lack of sleep or long-brewing frustration, but the princess knew she was as good as grounded if she didn’t stop herself soon.
“You’re right, I was…a little wild,” Star admitted.
“A little?” Marco spluttered, then took a step back as she glared daggers at him.
“You barely studied the spellbook, but it didn’t matter,” Pandora went on, both her eyes and chest burning with jealousy. “Princess Star was more advanced than almost all the queens before her, and she barely had to try.”
“Whoa, hold it!” the queen shouted, pointing a finger at her. “I dunno what Glossaryck said to you, but don’t stand there and pretend you know everything about my training, missy!”
“Glossaryck barely told me a thing!”
“Then don’t underestimate me, Pandi. You have no idea what I went through to get to where I am today.”
“So tell me -- what exactly does The Whispering Spell do, Mama?”
And now it was silent. Marco’s expression morphed from anger at his daughter’s smart mouth to utter shock. Star was a little less shocked, but Pandora didn’t miss the flicker of fear that crossed her blue eyes.
“I’ll take this one from here, Marco,” she said quietly. “Why don’t you go see where the twins ran off to?” He gave a slow nod, his eyes shifting between them warily before heading briskly for the door. Magical discussions weren’t exactly where he was needed, and it was best to leave it to the two women who had it flowing through their veins like electricity.
Once the doors closed, there was no sound aside from the breeze rustling the leaves on the hedges. Both mother and daughter continued to stare each other down as Star held the wand out and Pandora snatched it from her.
“We need to talk, Pandi.”
“Don’t change the subject, Mama -- I’m not letting this go.”
“I know it’s not fair that you’re struggling so much with your magic,” Star said, her tone laced with such sympathy that Pandora’s hardened stance wilted a bit. “Your first years with the Wand are supposed to be exciting, and they haven’t been for you. I’m sorry about that, and you know I’m always here to help. But I’m not gonna apologize for who I was back then just because you feel like you have to compare yourself to me.”
“Then at least apologize for this.” She shook the wand so firmly in her grip that green sparks flew from the ruby crystal. “He said it could be the Wand’s fault.”
“It’s no one’s fault, sweetie. It’s ‘cause half of you comes from a dimension without magic--”
“No! That’s just what you and everyone else wants me to think while they cover up what you did!” Pandora shook her head, running a quivering hand through her frazzled hair, her bloodshot eyes unfocused on the stone beneath her feet. “It doesn’t even make sense now that I think about it. Aunt Janna’s from Earth too, and Lily turned out more powerful than anyone in the Underworld.”
“Demon genes work differently, they’re always dominant,” Star explained. “Plus she’s been practicing her mom’s witchcraft way longer than you’ve studied the spellbook.”
“It’s not genes, it’s you!”
“What did I do?!”
“Glossaryck said the Wand hasn’t been the same since you cast The Whispering Spell!” the younger girl finally exploded, accidentally sending a shot of lighting towards the nearest hedge, torching a smoking hole in the greenery. “His words, not mine! Whatever you did, it’s the reason I’m a year into my training and I still suck! No matter how long I stay up reading, no matter how hard I work…” She bit her trembling lip as tears of exhaustion and defeat began to drip down her face. “I’ve spent so many hours blaming myself, and it turns out I should’ve been blaming the one who passed it down to me.”
“First of all, come sit down so we can talk like semi-civilized people.” Star watched her slump over to the wicker chair and throw herself into it, refusing to let her firm stance waver at seeing her daughter cry while her accusations still cut deeply. Which might have had to do with the fact that she did still feel some shame, even after all this time.
“Alright, spill,” Pandora grumbled, blotting her wet face with the heel of her hand. “Or do I have to feed you pudding too?”
“Check your tone and we’ll call it even,” Star shot back. “If I don’t let the elders or the ambassadors talk to me that way, then I’m definitely not gonna let my own daughter.” Pandora slid down further in the chair so her chin rested on her chest, her mother sitting on the abandoned loveseat opposite her. “How much did Glossaryck tell you?”
“Nothing I didn’t already know,” the princess shrugged, keeping her eyes averted. “There's a thing called The Whispering Spell that no one talks about, but I dunno what it does.” She paused as a horrible thought occurred to her. “It’s -- it’s not one of Eclipsa’s, is it?”
“No, it’s not hers.” Now Star had gotten quiet, staring at her folded hands on her jiggling knee. “The Whispering Spell…was taught to me by Queen Moon the Undaunted.”
Pandora blinked, raising her head slightly in newfound interest. “Grandma?”
“Yep. I learned it before I even had the Wand in my hands. And, like you, I didn’t know what it did at the time.”
“But you cast it,” her daughter challenged.
The queen took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “And the spell…destroyed the Wand.”
At that, any intrigue in Pandora’s expression was wiped clean away, reverting straight back to anger. “You destroyed it?”
“Yeah, I did.”
“W-why? Why would you do that?!”
“Because I--”
“It’s the Royal Wand, Mama!” Pandora interrupted, clutching it in her fists as she stared at her incredulously. “Our most important family heirloom, and you killed it?! Were you just so good that you didn’t need it anymore, so you decided to render it useless?!”
“That’s not it at all!” Star defended, balling her hands into fists.
“Didn’t you know what that would mean for your legacy? And your future heirs?!”
“I wasn’t thinking clearly at the time.”
“No, that’s Papa’s job, isn’t it?”
That struck a nerve, and Star stood to tower over her slouched child. “Pandora, are you going to listen to me or not?”
“Oh no, I think I got all I need to know,” she snapped, sitting up to face her. “I bet it wasn’t even because you were good. It was probably the opposite -- you screwed up really bad, didn’t you?”
“It’s not that easy--!”
“And now you shoved the broken piece of junk onto me like ‘well it’s not my problem anymore’! You didn’t even think for a second about how doing that would affect me, did you?!”
“I did!” Star roared. “I didn't know it then, but yes! It was all for you, Pandi! I screwed up a lot of magic when I was your age, more times than even Glossaryck can count. But the Whispering Spell wasn’t one of them.” She grabbed Pandora by the shoulders and squeezed tightly enough to keep her attention. “I cast it on purpose. And if I could go back, I’d do it all over again. Because if I hadn’t, you wouldn’t even exist.”
“What…?” Of everything the princess had expected to hear, that didn’t even make the list.
“You act like this Wand -- our magic -- is the most important thing in your life, and for a long time I thought so too. Wielding the Wand was my childhood dream, I thought it was all I’d ever want. But it’s not.” She let her hands fall limply as all the fight drained out of her in one fell swoop. “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you. I destroyed the Wand to save your father’s life.”
Pandora watched her mother sweep away from her, hunching her shoulders and hugging herself as if she were cold. There were very few people she would allow to see her like this, neglecting her stately posture and anything less than her usual optimistic approach. Sometimes the public would see her visibly angry. But never looking as tortured as she did now.
“What happened?”
“We were kids,” Star mumbled, raising her head and sighing towards the sky. “Barely had the wand for six months. Remember Toffee of Septarsis? The one in Grandma’s tapestry?” She turned back around in time to see her daughter nod slowly. “This was the…first time he came back.” A slight laugh escaped her; it was all starting to run together so much now that even she had trouble keeping them all straight. “Anyway, he kidnapped your father and I thought he was holding him ransom for the Wand. Turns out Toffee wanted the Wand destroyed for his own purposes. And if I didn’t comply, he was gonna kill my best friend.”
Pandora’s heart hammered in her chest, trying and failing miserably to even imagine having to make a choice like that at her age. “How did you…ya know, keep your cool?”
“I don’t think I did,” her mother sniffed out a chuckle, rubbing her finger along the corner of her eye where a tear had started to form. “Inside, I was screaming. I couldn’t breathe, I-I would’ve traded places with your Papa in a heartbeat. But that wasn’t what he wanted.” The malicious face with razor-pointed teeth, the low voice dripping with murderous intent still haunted her darkest nightmares. He was the first true evil she had ever faced, and because of that, she would never really be free of him.
“I shouldn’t have asked--”
“No honey, you should have. That night completely rocked my world, and not in a good way. Fighting monsters wasn’t just fun and games anymore, nothing was black and white. We’re royal, we represent our lineage, which also means we carry the past mistakes of the Butterflys inside all of us. I think you probably get that more than anyone.”
“Yeah,” Pandora breathed, touching where her spade mark shone crimson on her left cheek.
“Toffee was after me because of his past with my mother. He knew exactly how to break me because he knew there was something -- some-one -- I cared about more than my magic, even before I did.” She swallowed, “And he didn’t hesitate. He hit me right where it hurt, and I was forced to cast The Whispering Spell.”
“Oh Mama…” Pandora sighed out mournfully, pushing herself up from the chair to draw closer to her. “I’m sorry. About everything I said, I’m really really sorry.” Every inch of her throbbed with shame. How could she have assumed that her mother, who loved as fiercely as a lioness, wouldn’t have had a good reason for her actions? Hesitantly, she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around her mother’s shoulders, resting her head there. “You’re mad at me,” she remarked at feeling her stiffen.
“Yeah,” Star admitted, before placing her hand in the crook of Pandora’s arm, pressing her cheek to the top of her head. “You’d think after a lifetime of being belittled, I’d be used to it by now -- and I am. But…it hurts more coming from you, Pandi.”
“I know, I just -- I’m tired and frustrated and I wanna give up. And I took it out on you. But-but that’s no excuse--”
“Okay, okay,” the queen murmured as she felt her shoulder sleeve grow wet, returning her daughter’s hug tightly and kissing her hair. “Don’t worry about me, sweetie, it was a long time ago. But what about you?”
“What about me?”
“These late night training sessions, not leaving your room for days until you get a spell right -- not only is that not good for your Wand, but it’s not good for you.” She sat her back down on the loveseat and pulled back from the embrace, brushing hair out of her eyes. “Your brother and sister tease you ‘cause they miss you joking around with them. Papa and I are worried about you skipping meals and blowing off your friends. Being fifteen is hard -- trust me, I remember -- but it’s also supposed to be fun. And I feel like you’re missing out.” Her crystal blue eyes glistened with tears, “We’re worried about you, Pandi. All of us are. Mastering the Wand is important, but your loved ones always come first. I don’t want you to ever lose sight of that.”
Pandora felt her weariness weigh down on her as if gravity itself was pressing her into the ground, her mind spinning aimlessly and her heart full to bursting. Of course she loved her parents and her siblings, with all her heart. Lily was on the verge of not speaking to her due to how many times she’d cancelled plans, and she missed her and the rest of their crew. But…“I dunno what else to do though.” Her tears fell free and thick, making a splotchy mess all over her lap and Star’s bodice.
“Don’t force it,” her mother almost pleaded, wiping Pandora’s face in an attempt to stem the flow. “Your own magic is there, it’ll come to you when you’re ready. I was a special case, yeah, but it’s a blessing and a curse. You’re a really talented girl, Pandi, but you’re not perfect. And that’s okay. Every single Queen before you struggled in one way or another, but they all made their mark.” She squeezed her hands, “You will, too. I promise.”
They jerked around when the patio door opened, and Marco stepped into view. “Everything okay?” he asked reluctantly, his heart jolting at his wife and daughter’s tear-stained faces.
“Oh ya know, ‘til the next crisis,” Star joked lightly, dashing tears from her own cheeks. “Like who Pandi’s gonna take to our anniversary ball.”
Pandora groaned, “Nobody. I’m gonna just invite them both to join the crew and…I guess see what happens from there.”
“Good idea,” Marco grinned. “Stuffy balls are more fun with a bunch of friends anyway.”
“Ex-cuse me, my balls are not ‘stuffy’!” Star stood to glare at him with her hands on her hips.
“Alright, that was a strong word,” her husband replied, holding up his hands in defense. “But you gotta admit, would they be half as fun without Tom, Janna and Pony Head there?”
Star’s scowl deepened, like it always did when Marco was right. “Fine, ya got me there.”
“So Pandi, are you feeling -- hey, whoa!” Marco was nearly knocked backwards onto the ground as a body dove against his in a whirlwind of dark chocolate hair. He regained his balance by clinging to his daughter, who had buried herself in his chest with her arms crushing his middle.
“I love you, Papa,” came Pandora’s muffled voice.
“Gonna take a shot in the dark and assume somebody heard the story about a certain spell.” Marco glanced up at his wife over the top of Pandora’s head as he stroked her hair.
“Not exactly our most shining moment, if you recall,” Star attempted in humor. “At least you got an ‘I love you’ out of it.”
“Oh I’ll fix that -- hey Pandi.” He pulled back from her, “Wanna hear about the four separate occasions where your mother almost died in my arms, and one of them was in a Quest Buy?”
“I’ve been traumatized enough for -- wait, Quest Buy?” The princess raised her eyebrows quizzically.
“And that’s why I’m never allowed to buy your father gift cards ever again, the end!” Star rushed out hastily between nervous giggles, cocking her head to the side as she rubbed the back of her neck.
“O-kay, save that for another day.” Pandora shook it off as she gazed back up at her father. “Papa, you’re from Earth. You’re not magical like Mama or super strong like Grandpa or a monster like Tommy and Yvette. You’re not -- ya know -- Mewman.”
“Yeah?” Marco said slowly, wondering where she was going with this.
“People had low expectations of you. When did you finally prove yourself?”
Marco bit his lip, his brows knitting slightly in the middle of his forehead as he let go of her. “Geez, I-I wanna give you this surefire answer to make you feel better, but the truth is…I didn’t.”
“Marco,” Star whispered sadly.
“I’m still proving myself every day. As a King to the people of Mewni, as a dad to you and the twins…” He trailed off as his eyes found Star’s. “I’ve been trying to feel like I’m worthy enough for your mom for almost thirty years.”
“You dork.”
Pandora backed away as her mother flew towards them and seized her father around the neck, crashing her lips against his as she dug her fingers into his hair. She could hardly fathom the fact that there was once a time when her parents weren’t madly in love with each other, it just didn’t make sense to her. Especially when she saw the outlines of her mother’s heart emblems light up as the kiss deepened.
“How can someone so smart say something so stupid?” Star said breathlessly as they broke apart. “You’ve never had to prove a damn thing to me and you never will. I thought you knew that by now.”
“It’s nice to be reminded.” Marco smiled, still bewitched by the warrior rebel queen of Mewni after all these years. Though to him, she was just Star and always had been. “Pandi, you might be spending the rest of your life proving to everyone that you didn’t succumb to the prophecy, and that you’re going to become a gracious and powerful queen. Just make sure that you always believe it in your own mind.”
“And heart,” Star added. “Everything falls into place when they sync up.”
Pandora stared down at the wand pensively once more, and now the weight of the heirloom seemed to have lightened. With a lopsided grin that wistfully reminded Star of Marco at her age, the princess scrubbed off the fingerprints from the grip with the hem of her skirt until it was clean. “Yeah, I think it’s time for a break.”
“Good,” her mother nodded, “‘Cause I’m gonna need all the help I can get planning Nana’s surprise party. And ya know, I’m just an old lady who’s not up on all the top music hits right now…” She tapped her chin in mock thought, “Gosh, if only I knew a fantastic singer who could get me the tracks I need for karaoke.”
“Say no more, I’ll go get my laptop,” Pandora laughed at last, hooking the wand back onto her belt before heading back into the castle. Only this time, a smile glowed on her face that lit up her sparkling blue eyes.
“See?” Star sighed in relief as she placed her hands over Marco’s, who still held her around the waist from behind. “She just needs to relax and put things in perspective. I swear, she’s gonna worry herself to death.”
“You know who she reminds me of?” Marco asked, resting his chin in the crook of her neck.
“You?”
“Eh, kinda.”
Her face darkened, “Eclipsa?”
“Definitely not.” He pressed his lips briefly to her nape. “Your mother.”
There was a beat of silence before he felt her inhale slowly, removing her hands from her waist. Looking up, Marco saw she had her fingers pressed to her lips, her baby blues watering.
“Oh my gosh…yeah.” Star sniffled as Marco hugged her closer. “The late nights, trying to be perfect, sometimes she forgets what’s really important, that’s -- that’s totally Mom.”
“It’s definitely a more comforting thought than…well, the alternative.” A breeze rustled the hedges around them as if in warning -- the truth was their daughter’s reign had far from begun, and none of them were out of the woods yet.
“We’re never gonna stop worrying about her, are we?”
“Nope. Not ‘til the day we die, Marco. Every day…I’m gonna be scared for her.”