The tradition on Mewni goes that the youngest one in line for royalty will be executed first due to their lowest ranking in power - the princes and princesses. Then, it would increase in ranking. Next would be the King my dad - and then the Queen - my mom.

How lucky I was to be first.

My mom had spent the afternoon putting up my tangled and dirty hair with her own clips that she had. Though, it wasn't perfect, it's not like we could do anything about it. Living a week in our own castle's dreary and damp cell had its pros and cons.

Unfortunately, with the long, never-ending week I had to think in the cell, I could only come up with one pro - I finally discovered my mom has more than just a few emotions. Sure, she can be uptight, poise, and mad, but being trapped in this degrading prison has revealed her raw-self to me.

My mom was sympathetic and actually, for the first time ever, acted like a mother. On the cold nights in the cell, my parents would hold me tightly close to them and comb my golden blonde hair with their fingers.

The morning of our last day, my mom had actually teared up, too. As she did my hair in a messy bun, she asked me. "Star, sweetheart?"

"Yes?" I answered back in a mumble. I didn't bother turning my head around to face her. I focused my stare hard at the dirt ground. If I had to be honest, I was waiting for her to say something along the lines of motherly affection.

Instead, I got a, "Just don't keep your head down when you get out there - and no tears." She sighed and I could tell it was shaky. "We need to show them we are proud and brave...even if we go down without grace."

I shook my head slowly. Even as I am seconds away from meeting my doom, my mom is obnoxious.

Where was the, "I love you, Star. Thank you for being a great daughter." hoopla? Was she seriously going to say goodbye to me like this?

Before I had time to even wonder another thought, loud and heavy feet came marching to our cell. My eyes were beginning to well up with tears that dripped down my face. My dad's hand landed on my cheek, soft and caring as ever, and wiped my tears from rolling down my face.

"Princess," One of the guard's impatient voices boomed. "Let's go." Gazing up at the two bulky guards, they were not the guards that I recognized as my own castle guards. My castle guards wore blue and yellow colors, however these men wore dark grey and red. Their armor was also decorated with a design of crossed swords instead of swirls and stars. While they hustled me out of the cell, they tied my wrists together behind me back. The rope was tied tight, restricting me from struggling myself free.

As I was escorted out of the cell, my eyes began to burn and my pupils decreased in size. I couldn't recall the last time I had seen the sun. It was setting along the edge of the world until it will soon fall like an hourglass, counting down each tiny grain of sand to my incoming death. When my eyes were finally able to adjust again, the sight of my castle - my home - made my stomach tie itself in knots. I hadn't seen my own home's marble floors for a whole week.

Mentally, I said goodbye to each and every object in the room. It would be the last time I would even catch a glimpse of the golden thrones in the main room or even remember the memories of my tiny toddler feet scampering across those same old marble tiles.

I could hear the sounds of the townspeople, ranting and angrily yelling from the outside of the castle's double doors. As the guards brought me closer to the doors, I could hear the sound of a man's enraged voice yell to the townspeople. "People of Mewni, you are here to witness something...special! The fall of your royal family and the rise of a new one - a 'dictatorship', if you will! Today, you will witness the execution of your beloved princess, king, and queen!"

The crowd cried out with grief and disbelief. As the double doors revealed my fate, I was greeted by the man behind the enraging, strong voice. He was the man who took over my castle, invaded my home. It was because of him that I had to leave Marco behind and be captured.

If it wasn't for mom calling me on my dimensional mirror, they would have never found me. But I had a choice when they came for me - to resist them and be taken by force or come voluntarily.

I chose to come with no trouble, leaving Marco to not worry about me. I wish I could've said goodbye. Unfortunately, he probably has no clue where I am. He's probably worrying himself sick, searching for me like the last time I ran off on him. He's probably sitting in that police station right now, biting his nails down to the cuticles.

With some time to finally have a good look at the man in front of me, I speculated him from head to toe. Aside from the devilish grin he gave me, he had dirty blonde hair that was held back in a low and short, short ponytail. His shorter hair stuck out in front of his face and hardly touched his dark and full sruff of a beard. He wore a black tunic over his white, long-sleeved undershirt and long brown pants with black, slick shoes. He was a tall, thin, yet built, man, too. He looked about in his early thirties. My mom told me his name was Maroon.

My appearance out of the castle only brought more shouting and anger throughout the townspeople. When I was finally out, one of the guard's shoved me to the ground, making me land roughly and painfully on my knees. I kept my head down and despite my mom's last words to me, I began to cry. My throat clogged up and my mouth began to quiver uncontrollably. Still, I held it in with all my might, no matter how much that it felt impossible to.

Don't cry. Don't cry. Don't cry.

I tried my hardest not to but the moment I caught one of the men go for an axe in the corner of my right eye, I crippled under the pressure and let it out.

That's when Maroon's voice announced once more. "Anyone object to this execution, speak now or forever hold your peace!"

"I object!" An old woman with grey hair in the front row claimed with confidence, making the rest of the crowd take her lead and declare loudly. In just a few seconds, the grey-haired woman was dragged off by multiple guards. The crowd went insane. They screamed, maddened that the woman was being forced away.

"Now," He bellowed a second time. "Anyone else feel the need to object can spend the rest of their lives in prison as well!"

The townspeople hushed themselves and held their tongues, not daring to say another word. Maroon held a smile on his face as he turned to the executioner with the axe and gave a single nod. With that, my heart threatened to jump out of my chest and scatter off. The executioner covered his face with a black mask with only eye holes. I dropped my head, shut my eyes as tightly as I could, and waited.

I felt a sudden tough yank at my hair's bun, forcing my head to be lifted and my neck to be exposed. The split second I had opened my eyes in fright from the tight grab, I realized it was Maroon who had hold of my hair. "It's such a shame that such a beautiful girl like you has to go." He whispered so gently in my ear. My blood chilled cold and the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end.

Opening my eyes took a lot of effort but I did it anyway. Facing the crowd of fear-stricken faces was difficult to do, so instead, I looked at the sunset behind them. It was a lovely, heavy orange. Above the orange, a tinted blue. It wouldn't be long until it was night and the stars would be out.

The executioner gave the axe a couple of test swings next to my neck before he started a real sturdy swing. On his third time, he held the axe back as high as ever, ready for the real hit.

"Wait!" A young man's voice intruded through the silence. "I object!"

The thousand pound weight was lifted immediately off my chest as Maroon let go of my hair and the executioner let down his axe. The crowd of townspeople split away, revealing a short man in full Mewnian metal armor who came forward nervously. His steps were cautious and his face was covered with a knight's helmet.

The guards were about to take him away if Maroon hadn't held them back with the broadsword he pulled out of his sword sleeve. "How cute." Maroon laughed, pointing his sword in the knight's direction. "You think you can be the hero, huh? You think you're brave enough to stand up to me?"

Ignoring all Maroon's questions, the knight spoke out again. "Let her go." I could have sworn his voice sounded familiar, yet his voice, a little too quiet to know for sure.

Maroon laughed once more, this time harder than the last. "Easy for you to hide your face and speak up against me, boy. But, I'll have you know it's definitely not clever of you. Why don't you take off your helmet and reveal yourself, hm?" He used his sword to circle around the knight's helmet, gesturing to it.

"Just let her go - please! Take me instead! I'll go in her place!" The young knight begged, dodging Maroon's request. With his voice a little more louder, I could make out the tone a bit more. It sounded strangely and annoyingly familiar. I knew that voice.

Maroon, intrigued by the knight's offer, raised an eyebrow. "Step forth, knight of Mewni."

The knight did so, but not before a millisecond of hesitation. Maroon took a step closer to him, pulling off the young knight's helmet and abandoning it to the dirt ground with a clank.

My heart officially shattered. This couldn't be happening. He can't possibly be here. What was he doing here?

"No!" I yelled out, trying to run to him. The guard behind me tugged me back with brute force as I cried out even more. "No! Marco! Marco, please! Get out of here!" I couldn't control myself anymore. My eyes flooded with tears and with my free legs, I kicked uncontrollably.

Marco's dark hazel eyes were even beautiful when he was terrified. "I'm sorry, Star." His bittersweet voice began. "I-I can't let you die."

Maroon chuckled, even wiping away a tear with a single finger. "Oh, this is just too good! The knight comes to save the damsel in distress!"

Marco looked back at Maroon, eyes becoming stern and hard. "Is it a deal? Me for Star."

All I could do was watch now, my energy all worn down from struggling. After a couple unbearable seconds, Maroon nodded. "You heard the kid. Let the Princess go." He said to the guard. Almost immediately, the guard untied me and set me free, my wrists feeling relief to let blood finally flow to my hands.

"Try anything and I'll kill you both." Maroon mumbled to Marco, harshly grabbing him by his suit and then pushing him back.

"Marco!" I sobbed, rushing towards him. I hugged him tight, not wanting to ever let him go.

"It's okay, Star. You're safe now." He whispered to me, returning the hug.

"No! I can't let you do it! This isn't fair. You should go home...while you still can."

"Hey. Look at me, Star." He said, holding my face with his hands. When I did so, his eyes twinkled, making my face fall feverishly hot. "I'll be fine. Just trust me."

I bowed my head and let him go, the townspeople still watching and keeping their distance. Marco may have been the one volunteering, but I still felt my adrenaline pumping, making my heart thump against my chest.

As he sat on the dirt ground and waited, the executioner swung his axe high, ready to throw it down. I turned away, unable to even look.

"Oh, yeah. And one more thing." Marco interrupted. His voice was proud and booming. I turned around just in time for him to finish. My eyes were wide and shocked. Marco lifted up his head and flashed me a big smile. "I didn't come alone."

Before I knew it, two other people had descended away from the crowd and into my view - a floating blue pony head and a three-eyed demon in a tux.

"Tom? Pony Head?"

"We're here for you, B-fly." Pony Head declared. "You ready to pound his face in, T?" Pony Head asked Tom, her unihorn illuminating a magical beam of power.

Tom responded back, his three eyes inverting and his hands summoning swirling balls of fire. "He messed with the wrong demon. He asked for it."

As the townspeople began to cheer, my smile couldn't be any bigger. Pony Head's horn charged up fast, but not as fast as it struck Maroon. He was struck so hard, in fact, that he actually got stuck in the deep indent he made to the castle's wall. Tom, as tempered as ever, made sure Maroon didn't have any bright ideas about getting away, using his blazing flames to lock him in place to the wall by his wrists ans ankles. Eventually, he dropped his sword.

Maroon put up a fight while he was detained, groaning in frustration when he couldn't battle off the cuffs. "Guards, seize those kids! Have them all executed!" Maroon hollered. I could literally feel the power in his angered voice when my heart jumped. His voice was echoed across the entire kingdom and its land.

Like Maroon had commanded, guards came rushing to my side and grabbed me by both arms. Even Tom and Pony Head were detained.

"Hey," Tom complained. He spoke with annoyance and an easily tempered attitude. "Let me go! I'm not done with you!"

"Yes, but I am done with you." Maroon said, finally being released from Tom's magical restraints. He got up and brushed himself off, picking up his sword again. "People of Mewni," He proclaimed, holding his arms in the air for dramatic effect. "These kids have made the fatal mistake of challenging me! Well, this is what happens if you try to stand up to me!"

He approached Marco as he was being held back by a guard. Maroon's face was clenched up in uncontrollable fury. He yanked Marco, pulling him up to the crowd of terrified eyes by, yet again, his armored suit. Just seeing his face, I had empathy for him. I was scared out of my mind for Marco and I knew he was desperately pleading for his life.

"Let me show you what happens when you disobey me!" Maroon yelled, his shining sword high to the sky. In just one second, my lungs blew out the air, suddenly making me feel like I was punched - no, kicked - in the gut. My heart plummeted and shattered. What happened at that moment didn't feel real.

Maroon had taken his sword and impelled Marco in the back, plunging the sword farther in him until it stuck out towards the front of his body. Marco's bulging eyes stared frightfully down at the sword that was stabbed through his stomach. When Maroon proceeded to pull the sword out, Marco fell forward, his breath becoming panicked and short. His gurgled breathing was all I could hear.

"Marco! Nooo! Marco!" I screamed and shouted his name over and over. Immediately, my eyes flooded and I fell to my weak knees with the guards still not letting go. I didn't have any strength to fight them. Sadness had taken a tight grasp on me. But with that sadness and overwhelming feeling came madness and rage.

Marco was going to be avenged. I was going to make Maroon sorry for doing what he had done. He could mess with Mewni. He could mess with the townspeople, sure. But, when he messed with Marco, oh man! He had no idea how bad he was going to get it. I just needed to...

"Dip down..." And just like that, I had lost consciousness.

...

Coming back to my senses felt like I was just awakening from a coma. The first people who were by my side were Tom and Pony Head, though their silhouettes were still blurry and their colors blended together. My body felt weary and numb. I had no energy to move.

I thought Pony Head was saying something since her figure was moving. The only problem was I couldn't hear her. The ringing in my ears continued to annoy me. Tom, being the closest one to my eyes, seemed to be holding me upright. Tiredness hung onto me. I didn't want to wake up. Not just yet.

Before I closed my eyes again to rest, I caught a glimpse of Marco behind me. He was motionless and laid on the dirt ground, holding his stomach. The only odd thing I found when discovering him was that I was too exhausted to be angry, aggravated, or even heartbroken for that matter.

Before I closed my eyes and fell back into the oblivion, I felt my mouth form the name, but I couldn't hear myself. Tom had turned away and back to the boy behind him. If it wasn't for the disappearance of his three eyes, I would have never known he turned his head. My vision failed to get any better and my head throbbed. I just needed more sleep.

...

The voices began to grow in clarity. I moaned and fluttered my eyes, my vision becoming less and less blurred. Before me, was my mom and dad, looking down at me with matching concerned facial expressions. "Star?" My dad's voice spoke softly.

"Mom? Dad? What happened?"

"We were just about to ask you the same thing." My mom chortled, her face filled with relief at the sight of me.

I turned my head to glance at my surroundings. Wait a minute. I knew this place. My bedroom.

"Our castle guards said they seemed to witness Maroon magically disintegrate." My dad said.

"They said they saw you dip." My mom smiled and I knew she was looking at me with pride, however, I didn't feel anything.

"What?" My mouth felt dry and tasteless as if I had been out for longer than I thought.

"Star..." My mom began, restarting. "You saved Mewni."

"Marco." I suddenly remembered. My mom may have claimed that I saved Mewni, but the real question was, "Did I save Marco?"

"Star, did you even hear a word your mother said?" My dad asked, though I didn't care.

"Marco? Where's Marco? Is he-?"

My mom and dad exchanged troubled faces, making my stomach become queasy and churn. I sat up, regaining the strength I didn't know I even had. Despite my sudden energy boost, my head was dizzy from my unexpected movements.

I pulled my bed sheets off of me and began to get out of bed. When I tried to stand up, my legs gave out underneath me and I fell to the ground. My parents were startled and attempted to help me up.

"Sweetheart, you still have to rest." My dad told me, giving me a hand. "You shouldn't be moving around so quickly."

My legs were still uneasy from laying down and my head was still fuzzy. Maybe my dad was right, but the only thing that would settle me is being able to see Marco again. "No. I need to see Marco. Where is he?"

Before my parents had a moment to think or say anything, I heard a knock on my open bedroom door. Tom, still dressed in his black tux with one hand in his pocket, stood there. "I thought I heard someone was awake." His fanged smile was composed and easy.

"Tom!" I ran over to him, almost stumbling over my rug. Tom was in my castle! He was actually in my castle!

"Woah, calm down there, Starship. Don't hurt yourself." Tom said, both his hands out infront of him.

"You can't be here!" I whispered frantically. "My parents don't even know you!"

Embarrassing but true, I used to sneak out with Tom while we were dating. I knew my parents would never approve of me dating a demon, so I did the only thing I knew I could do if I wanted to see him - hop out of my bedroom window and run away with him.

To see him standing before my parents was just too awkward and as I met my parents' faces, I saw they both had their eyebrows raised.

"Yep, this is Tom!" I announced to them, attempting to push him out of my bedroom. "Just a friend!" I nervously giggled, only making them more suspicious.

"We'll be right back." Tom said, pulling me out of the doorway and into the hallway. "Come with me." He said in a hushed, serious voice with a head nod as if to gesture out of the lengthy corridors. He had stuck both of his hands in his pockets and walked with composure.

"Where's Marco?" I asked, desperate to see him just once more. The uneasy feeling in my stomach was worsening. With every second I grew more and more worried. I tried to swallow the mysterious lump in my throat and keep it down.

"Relax, Princess." Tom muttered sarcastically. "I'm taking you to him. He's in the infirmary."

"Infirmary?" I repeated. I felt my head begin to beat and pound and my stomach want to throw up, although I probably haven't eaten anything for days.

...

"You ready?" Tom asked, finally stopping at a room in the infirmary that was sealed off with a curtain.

I stared at the faded blue curtain that led onwards. I didn't want to go further on. My hand was out infront of me, wanting to pull the curtain back, but my hand was shaking too much. I knew I wasn't going to like what I was going to see. Only the worst patients get sealed off and have their own private curtains.

Tom laid his hand on my shoulder and gave me a caring and gentle look. "If you're scared, we can go in at the same time."

With a hesitant nod, I smiled. I took a deep breath in as Tom pulled the curtain back and guided me in. Instantly, I turned back and shut my eyes tight, hoping that when I opened them, it would all have been a terrible, terrible dream.

But alas, this was real and not a dream.

"I've been watching him for you ever since I brought him here. He hasn't woken up yet, but the nurse says he's getting better." Tom let out a calm laugh. "I hate to say it, but I kinda care about him too. Afterall, he did just save your life." He crossed his arms and leaned on the wall.

What he wasn't expecting was my sudden embrace as I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him. "Thank you." I mumbled into his shoulder, my eyes beginning to well up.

He brought his arms around me and hugged me back. His comfort was all it took to make me feel better. "Yeah, yeah. Whatever."

I pulled away and gazed upon Marco, who was resting in the hospital bed. It may have been dark in the hospital room, but I could see it all. He was hooked up to an IV stand that appeared to be giving him more blood. He had an oxygen mask covering his nose and mouth. The machine behind him tracked his heartbeat, beeping everytime his steady, healthy pulse was there.

Tom hadn't released his hand from my shoulder and kept himself behind me at a respectable distance. I couldn't control the lump crawling up my throat and let out my sobs onto Marco's hospital bed. "I'm so sorry, Marco." I whispered.

A light hand touched the top of my head and stroked my hair with a gentle manner. "S-Star?" The gently quiet and raspy voice spoke up.

It was Marco's voice. Even though he was just recovering from a long sleep and his voice was scratchy and hoarse, I still recognized his voice.

"Marco!" I sniffled.

"Hey." He said, making my heart cry out in joy. I could see his smile even through the oxygen mask he wore.

Out of pure happiness, I hugged him to me close. It was only at that point that I realized I was squeezing him too hard for him to even breathe, causing him to cough and clench up in pain. When he sat up to hold his abdomen, I saw his bandages that were hidden under his bed's covers.

Marco was shirtless and his bandages wrapped around his entire stomach. As Marco threw a short but violent coughing fit, his heart rate on the machine began to speed up a bit. The whole time, I held onto his hand. His hand gripped mine with intense force, crushing my own hand. When he was done coughing, he laid back down and heaved in and out until his heart rate was normal again.

"Are you okay?" I asked, frightened by his surprising episode.

"Yeah. Just...no more hugs - please." He chuckled, his voice still really raspy. Marco's eyes averted mine and met Tom's as if he had just noticed him for the first time. "Hey, I never got to thank you."

"Thank me?" Tom snickered. "For what?"

"You serious?" Marco responded with half a smile. "If it wasn't for you and Pony Head coming out with me, I wouldn't have been able to get Star back. You fought like a beast out there!"

Tom exhaled briefly through his lips then responded. "Nah, you're the one who took the sword to the back!"

Tom and Marco shared a laugh.

...

In the next couple of days, Marco began to start walking again. As he did, I would be there, holding his hand for support. But that wasn't even the difficult part. Recovering for Marco was easy. It was the explanation to his parents that he couldn't do when they showed up worried about his mysterious disappearance from home.

It's not like his parents could pound him to the ground for doing so anyway since he already had been there and done that. Sure, his parents were mad with him for a while, but they eventually forgave him and ended up having sympathy for him.

When he was ready, we took him home too. I guess school was the best to come out of all of this. Marco got a pretty heck of a lot of attention for coming back with the title of a hero. He walked into school right in the middle of the week, which to most people was shocking.

Everyone poured out their excitement for seeing us stand in the doorway. To them, we had gone missing and made a grand reappearance.

So I guess in the end of it all, the only thing I wasn't expecting was the ten pound weight of homework I had to make up.

(My original AU)