Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Was anyone surprised that their own queen was not making this end-of-battle speech? No, not really.

But Princess Ioa was here, olive-toned face marked with fresh scars, standing on the castle balcony. Her short dark blue hair was flipped up at the ends, wild around her green eyes. She raised a gloved hand.

“I am so very proud of all of you,” She said, followed by a deep breath  -

“Including our allies. Truly, we could not have defeated those strange space ghosts .... things without them.” She laughed awkwardly, but continued after a beat. “We have had our differences, I know. The past shall be left there - your bravery will be written in our history books, never to be forgotten.”

Said allies - the monsters - knew very well that, while their part in what would come to be called The Space Ghost Onslaught, that soon enough, the battle would turn right back against them instead of against glitchy, cryptic beings. Still, the small group rose their weapons, cheered, and pretended to believe the child.

“There is a long road to recovery ahead. I won’t spare your feelings. The crops to be replanted, the spells to be undone. Some dead to be buried, some to live only in our memories. And we will be there to help and lead you through it.” Her father stepped forward from behind her, to her right. A few eyes flickered to Ioa’s opposite side, but no mother appeared.

This was a thirteen-year old girl was left to give the speech about a war’s end, a set of brutal battles where she lost a multitude of friends. Because her mother was off dabbling in dark arts.

“We’re going to come among you, as good rulers should, and help you as you need it. Go forth, Mewnians.” She smiled and dismissed them with a gesture and turned away, quite quickly.

Her face dropped, and she rubbed her cloud-shaped cheek marking, armor shifting and creaking. King Robin reached out to touch his daughter’s shoulder, but Ioa shook it off instinctively before letting out a few sobs and looking around.

“Sorry...sorry. I got the words, right?”

Everyone nodded. It was suitable.

She cleared her throat and steeled her shoulders, "We better get started, I'll meet you in the village soon." And walked past her father and the castle staff on a personal mission.

“Of. Course.”

Ioa found her mother where she always was - in the deepest part of the castle basement. The steps alone were at least three miles down, going from pearly white to rotted wood. So far was her magical laboratory, there were roots from ancient trees poking through the soil. Like a witch’s lair.

“Mom, where were you? Seriously?”

“Working, child.” Eclipsa mumbled. She flipped through the Book of Spells to a page, leaned forward, and muttered an unintelligible language toward it. Purplish-black characters swam across the page and formed characters Ioa could not read. “Hush.”

“You’ve worked enough,” Ioa strode across the lab to the opposite side of the table, staring nearly eye to eye with her mother. “You couldn’t even be bothered to thank your citizens. The citizens who died for their queen, for you. And from you.” 

Eclipsa glanced up at her - and looked away nonchalantly. Turning to a blank wall, she spoke in a strange tongue,  opening and closing her fingers at it...until a swirling portal of purple and grey magic began to appear, slowly, expanding wide enough for Eclipsa alone to step through.

The magic cleared to show - a forest. One of Mewni’s Far Forests, where the skies were always nighttime, speckled with red and white stars. A place Ioa had never gone, for it was filled with monsters.

She took a deep breath, pinching the bridge of her nose. “You wasted your time to make this? When you could just use the Scissors?”

“I don’t want to just use the Scissors, Ioa -”

“This was not important enough to abandon your people over!” Ioa’s fists were clenched, she was breathing heavily.  She kept going, screaming at her mother, who was still facing the portal, hair being blown about by the magic.

“You defeated the enemy with a spell you thought you could handle. You couldn’t, and you can’t face yourself, let alone the people whose friends who were caught in the backfire.” Ioa found herself shaking and steadied herself. “So you come - here,” She gestured half-heartedly to the wall where the portal once stood. “You run away.”

Silence. Ioa didn’t like yelling at her mother like this - not out of love, but terror of her power and her growing disregard for everything that was not her skill.

Eclipsa turned slowly to face her. “I was so close to the glory.” She mumbled, looking back over her spellbook upon the table, before looking up, eyes wide, at Ioa. “Do they know?”

“The - the Mewnians?”

“Mewnians, riffraff - do they know that my spell took the lives of their friends, their family, as well as our enemies?”

Ioa shook her head.

Eclipsa frowned. “Well - what do they think happened?”

“That - that the Ghosts did it. That they exploded all at once, and some of us were caught in the crossfire.”

"Idiots." Then - nodding, slowly.  “I believe .... I see my error. My spell was as follows -

Go, my power, find and seek
the ones who think me their enemy
stop their quarrel, cool their wrath
at the end of my magic blast.”

A moment of pause. “Wonky iambic pentameter, but the spell must have also affected those Mewnians who consider me to be ill fit to be queen,” Eclipsa smiled. “Like you.” She stood up and straightened her hat. “My spell did exactly what I aimed.”

The book was closed and, humming lightly, she made her way toward the door.

“Ma, I don’t think you’re a bad queen -” Ioa stopped. “You aimed to kill your own subjects?”

“Don’t be stupid, of course not.” She scoffed. “The spell aimed to rid me of anyone considered an enemy. I wouldn’t use it again for that purpose, but less dissenters work for me.”

“You - really don’t seem too torn up at killing people you claim to protect.” The room was swimming in front of her. Eclipsa had never been quite touchy-feely, but she did care and express concern. Or, she used to. When she used to come outside and talk with the public. Her dark clothing and strong aura of magic may have been intimidating, but everyone wanted to make an effort to know their queen. Now the people never saw her. It was left to Ioa and Robin to rule the populace - they hardly shared a word with Eclipsa.

“It wasn’t ideal, child. I can refine the spell, craft a offspring spell.”

“Let the people know what happened! It was an accident, even if it worked. It hurt Mewnians and monsters.”

At that, Eclipsa’s face did drop from it’s smug superiority to a flash of guilt. “Oh.... dear,  I suppose it did affect them too, didn’t it.”

Now she cares?

“Yes, Mom, it did.” Ioa crossed her arms and stumbled toward the steps at the dungeon entrance, sitting heavily. “I know they’re normally our enemies, but is it right to pretend you didn’t kill scores of them?”

Eclipsa walked over and sat beside her, hands folded. “Darling, it wouldn’t do any good to tell people.  Unless you wanted to encourage a revolt against the matriarchy.” She put an arm around her. “And then, the monsters would have help.”

Minutes passed, in silence. Until Ioa stood up  and began to walk up the stairs. Eclipsa looked up after her, as if deciding. To follow her daughter and take her place as Queen of Mewni. Or to return to her dark sorcery.

When the steps receded, she stood up and approached the wall again, pulling open the portal, and stepping through to the Far Forests.

Chapter Text

She was born to Queen Umbra, whose name meant ‘The dark side of a sunspot’. Umbra’s face markings were unusual - crescent moons pointed upward, so that she always looked perpetually tired. But her people knew her as a jovial, upbeat woman and a concerned, caring queen. One of the first things she did after giving birth was to share the news with the anxious crowd that stood below the balcony of the royal suites.

“I present to you, my kingdom, your future ruler.” She raised the bundle to the cheering crowd. A chubby arm reached toward the sky. “We shall meet again in one year and see what name the world itself may grant her.” Waving to her people, Umbra retired to her chamber and stared at the baby, together with her king.

In private, she called the unnamed baby all sorts of adoring names - “Darling, sweetheart, my shining light”. She would smile, greenish - black hair frizzy around her small head - however the young princess never laughed. The princess would burble and coo. She was also very good at screaming and crying. But even when she was at her happiest, she never shrieked in glee.

In her eleventh month of life, the young girl was clinging to a table, tottering on unstable legs as she walked it’s oval length, when she suddenly fell onto the plush carpet.

Umbra glanced up from her work. “Did you have an accident, darling...” The words stopped as she noticed the situation.

The table has been split in two, jaggedly, down the middle. In two pieces - the Crest of House Butterfly upon it. The princess was unharmed, pushing herself up to a sitting position to look at what had happened.

“Goodness me,”  Umbra crouched beside her and placed a finger on the table. “That table has been in our family for generations. Did you -”

The baby turned to her accident - and giggled, and Umbra looked at her in surprise. Her eyes were drawn to her cheeks, where her face markings would go - where they were slowly fading in .  They only began to appear when a girl of the Butterfly Matriarchy cast her first bit of magic . Usually after a year of life, though earlier cases were not unheard of. She would have to ask The Spell Book.

Umbra smiled wide, lifting the child in her arms, cooing at her. “Aren’t you a special thing, my dear. Whatever shall you do next?”

A month later, Umbra stood before her people again, a long and old scroll placed on a podium before her and the infant in her arms. The Magic High Commission stood within the doors to the royal suite.

“I’m not quite sure when the name will show up, but thanks all the same for showing up yet again,” She gave a crooked smile. “Since we’re here, tell me how things have been with you all! Anyone?”

The crowd began to shout all at once. “One at a time now, come on.”

 Something flashed at the edge of her vision, but she ignored it.

A young boy piped up. “Your Majesty - what’s that?” He pointed a finger to the sky.

 Stars were falling over the woods outside of the city, quickly, as if from nowhere. It was not unusual - besides their absurdly large number. Several were clustering together and falling to the earth in a clump, streaking across the surface of the sinking afternoon sun.

“Is it the Ponyheads’ doing?” Asked a guard.

 “They ain’t in charge of the stars!” Said another.

 Faster they fell; A cluster was forming, quickly, becoming big enough for concern. Umbra was about to postpone the Naming when it hung for the briefest of moments in the sky. Not directly in front of the sun - but long enough to give some of the people staring permanent eye problems.

Umbra braced herself around her child as she readied for the impact. The aftershocks of it’s crash were felt by all surrounded by the queen.

 Silence fell. “Is anyone harmed?” She called out. A chorus of ‘No’s.

“Well - that was certainly unexpected,” Umbra stood taller, smiling at the awed citizens. “I’ll make this quick so perhaps we can go harvest it. I wonder what that was about?”

“Perhaps a blessing for the child.”

 Glossaryk has appeared to her right. So far, he only arrived when the Spellbook was opened.

As if reading her thoughts - “I’m bound to every magical document your family possesses. It can get to be a hassle, let me tell you...” He glanced at the infant - she was staring at the sky where the stars had fallen - then back to the parchment.  “Oh - looks like she has a name now.”

 It almost did not register in her mind to read the name. Eagerly looking at the paper, she read it quietly, loud enough for Glossaryk alone to hear. “ Eclipsa . That is...” Uncanny, Foreboding -

 “Ironic , yes. Go on! Let them know.” He nodded to the crowd.

 “Right, yes. Ahem.” All eyes turned back to her. “I present to you now, Princess Eclipsa of Mewni.”

 There was applause, and cheers, dying down rather quickly. Not that a new princess was unexciting, but many of them would see at least one more Naming in their lifetimes.

“Everyone is welcome to visit the castle for the naming feast....but it will be here when you finish with that bit of mining,” Umbra winked and dismissed them with a nod. “Go with blessings.”

The crowd dispersed. With Eclipsa straining to keep her eyes on the sky, Umbra hurried inside.

Lekhmet bleated in a panic.

 “Yeah, what were those falling rocks about?” Rhombulus said loudly. “I can take care of it! I got this!”

 “Hush, Rhombulus, honestly, don’t upset Eclipsa.” Umbra was edgier than she realized. “They were falling stars - it happens.”

 “They do, but usually with warning.” Hekapoo eyed her shrewdly. “Has anything else odd happened lately?”

Like my infant daughter doing magic? Suddenly, Umbra thought the two things might be connected - and that she’d rather keep the information to herself. “No, but we’ll keep watch.” Don’t say anything Glossaryk.

But he was already at the door. “Kids, the universe is wild and unpredictable. If I were to try and understand every iota of it yada yada yada . If you’ll excuse me, I am off to that feast !” He disappeared and somehow, took their worries with them.