Summary:
So many questions …
Crescenta watched as her daughter, Rhina Butterfly, stepped forth. "Rhina … do you swear to uphold the honor of the Butterfly legacy, and do right by this kingdom?" It was thankfully a much more celebrated affair than Dirhenia's, because they could actually decorate the hall with colors beyond black and gray, and she didn't have to deal with the awkwardness of giving one child the wand over another.
"I swear mother." Her beautiful little darling smiled. "I will do my best to advance this kingdom into the future, with knowledge beyond our people." Rhina was very much a bookworm, so the mother had little to no doubt that her little girl had much wisdom to spread inside that pretty head of hers.
"Then by the power invested in me, I pass on the Butterfly legacy." She passed on the wand. "May it do you wonders, Rhina." The want gained lines that covered it completely, shifting around and changing shape like some sort of puzzle, until it became a green stick, with the top holding, what appeared to be, a five dimensional rubix cube.
"So dimensional…another puzzle to solve." Her daughter became amazed by the cube immediately, already shifting her entire focus into trying to put it into place. Well, she certainly showed more investment in the wand in five seconds than Dirhennia did in five years.
The door slammed open, the Rose Guard panting in exhaustion, eyes wide. "Come on … I was supposed to be over the missing it phase!" The immortal woman complained.
"Some traditions just seemed to carry on no matter what generation." Crescenta as well as every guest in the audience laughed. "It means alot that you showed at all." The queen considered it a good luck charm. She was really glad she wasn't in the planned timeline of events where she forcibly hunted down Rose and dragged her into the ceremony kicking and screaming.
"Of course I showed up, Rhida is a lovely little mind to look after." Rose smiled. "So, how does it feel?" Her daughter ignored the woman, working on solving the cube incessantly.
"Come on, you three dimensional stack of squares completely equal in width, length, and depth! Form already!" Rhina was completely sucked into her puzzle, her face becoming red and light bits of steam emanating from her head.
"... Rose, please don't let my daughter become so obsessed with work she completely ignores the kingdom itself." She pleaded with the woman.
"I told you we should've gotten her dolls instead of that encyclopedia for her fifth birthday." Emily nudged her in the arm with a whisper.
"Well sorry for not thinking that reading would somehow become a bad thing." If there was anything she learned about Queen Eclipsa from Rose, it was that all knowledge was good knowledge…..then again, there was probably a reason why the woman was considered the Queen of Darkness.
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Rose walked knocked on the door. "Hey Rhina, are you alright? It's been a few days since you've left your room." She was getting a bit worried.
"Just a minute, I just need to wash some infinity out of my eyes!" Rose blinked at that sentence, before opening the door and watching as the young woman looked like she was having a seizure, a rainbow presented in front of her. "You take a peek into the ether one time, and it forces you to keep staring."
"... What is this?" She asked, pointing at … everything.
"I invented a spell to let me see the universe like Glossaryck does." She laughed. "I just needed to do it over a longer period so my mind can process bits and pieces instead of exploding or turning infantile." She took a spoon and slurped down dozens of cups of pudding. "Apparently this stuff has brain stimulating properties, so I'm consuming as much as I can to lessen the strain."
"I keep telling people that, but for some reason nobody listens." The blue jerk sighed. "It's a pain being the only smart one at times, ain't that right Rose?"
"There's being smart, and there's being a know-it-all." She grumbled.
"What's the difference?" Rhina asked completely seriously.
"One uses their knowledge to help people, and the other uses it to lord their superiority."
"Huh….guess I'm a know-it-all." Rhina realized, before shrugging and going back to her books. "Maybe after national riddle day, people will finally realize they should just dedicate all their time into solving puzzles."
"There's other things than puzzles." Rose paused, figuring out how to word this. "I'm worth more than power, more than money, but without a partner the idea of me is funny. What am I?"
"Pffft, you think I was born yesterday? The answer is obviously love." Rhina rolled her eyes.
"Exactly, all the puzzles in the world won't compare without people to share them with."
"But I already have love. The love of my mom, Aunt Emily, and you. Don't think I need anything else." Rhina stated matter-of-factly. "And I already forced myself to love John Roachley since we're already arranged, so I think I've already filled my quota on that front."
"... What?" Rose stated, crushing the wall next to her with bare hands.
"Oh, you didn't know? Well Mom was telling me about the importance of having a kid and all that to help the kingdom or whatever, I wasn't really paying attention, so I just said to pick whoever she thought would help the kingdom."
"I see …" For a second she thought this was an against the will kind of thing she needed to strangle someone for. Glad to see Crescenta just did it on a misunderstanding. "And….what's this about forcing yourself to love?"
"Love spell. I wasn't interested in anyone, so I did it to be a 'loving wife' or whatever the book says." She held up 'how to be a good stay at home wife' next to her. "So I can do it without making him or my kid mad, while I focus on riddles." Rhina clapped like she solved a puzzle. "Oh, here's a fun one." She smiled. "Seven came before Rhina, if you subtract the boy. Add four more reigns to her domain, and what gets destroyed?"
"...That implies Mewni gets destroyed." Rose said hesitantly.
"Or it could be the Butterfly family itself. Or the castle, or even something bigger than that!" Rhina looked like an excited school girl.
"Or it implies that Mewmans stop being stupid and finally get my hidden request." Glossaryck started with a shrug. "It's a big list."
"Exactly, there's so much that it implies, that the answer is nearly infinite! I could spend months, maybe years and still not get a straight answer. Finally, a riddle worth my time!" Rhina pointed to a large chart with tacks and strings connecting everything.
"Oh…this is the side of your mother you inherited." Rose wouldn't have minded if the obsessive compulsiveness didn't show itself for another generation or twelve. "Just…remember to eat…and bathe…and breathe."
"I can promise two of those things." The woman smiled after some thought. "Oh, before you go, while I was deep in the abyss, I managed to find something you might be interested in hearing." The Queen cleared her throat. "Out from the stars, came a great seed. The fruit that it bears, shall bring harmony."
"Okay, the seed obviously means me, but the fruit? I can't imagine what that implies."
"My top vote is peach." Glossaryck smirked. "You know, there was a tale of a baby boy being born from a peach floating downstream somewhere on earth."
"Wait…a child…my own…" Rose felt stumped and a bit flummoxed by the notion. "But I can't…can i?"
"You've slept with Mewmans, Humans, and Monsters." Glosseryck reminded her. "You obviously can have the 'right equipment'."
"... I hate you with a passion." She just hoped her hypothetical child never heard about her 'adult' life … that was a thing no one should be aware of.
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Toffee snuck into the cave, using their relatively smaller size to sneak past the elders running around. He never thought he'd get to see Seth speak in action, it was gonna be magnificent! The strongest, most, and probably longest living durable of all the Serpentari, who took on the mighty Rose Quartz … or slept with her, never got clarification there.
He may have held respect for very few beings in this life, but such a symbol of his own strong and superior race he would gladly lay down his life for in a heartbeat. "Monsters …" He never understood why the man always addressed 'all' monsters. Like they were somehow equal or something. "I am sorry, I have failed us." He stated. "Through my arrogance at being a good leader, I never tried to compete with the Avarious clan, and now they rule the political world of monster kind in the place of Globgor."
There were bitter groans at the mention of the Avarious family, and rightfully so, being greedy sellouts to the enemy, but the name of Globgor was by far the most disgusting one he heard. There was hardly an ear around Mewni that didn't know of the Monster's relationship with the Queen of Mewni, and it sickened him to no end to see such a feared and mighty being intimate with those vile vermin that plagued the land.
"I trusted Rose Quartz. She cared about monster kind, and she still does … but she is too kind." He complained. "She cares about Mewmans just as much as she does us. And we know as long as they live, Monsters will never be given true rights, or acceptance. We will never be allowed to grow or expand."
Everyone in the crowd was chanting in agreement, while Toffee was taken aback by the idea of Seth even coming close to trusting someone that wasn't his own kind. Even if the Rose Guard wasn't a Mewman, she still wasn't a monster. There was no time for compromise or black and white with this situation. You were either an ally or an enemy.
"I've been around for hundreds of years. I was fortunate enough to survive through the dark ages of Solaria's reign, and her brutal onslaught on us all. Friends, family, Women, Children, she was the culmination of EVERYTHING the Mewmans truly are! Vile, merciless savages that plague and ruin everything they touch!" The monsters roared with hate, Toffee joining with joy.
"And then there was Eclipsa, the queen that was defective enough tactually try for peace. And look what happened, her own kingdom froze her inside of crystal! Even the few good things they have are stomped out by their desire for endless expansion!" Why did he say it like that? There was nothing good in other species. Monsters only good feet were not being completely worthless to Serpentari.
"We must work hard, build up an army, strengthen ourselves, grow in strength!" He shouted. "We must become strong and powerful to go against the Mewmans when the time comes!" Seth roared to the crowd. "No matter how long it takes, Monsters WILL be the dominant species of the land! Trust in me, in my strength and ability as a Serpantari! Nothing they do, no amount of magic they can produce shall get in the way!"
He could hear them shout and chant, and he felt inspired, he felt worthy, this was the man they could trust! "Hey, a kid." He was picked up. "You're not supposed to be here." Spoke a shifter, glaring at him.
"Let me go!" He shouted, trying to wiggle out, much to his embarrassment.
"Little boy." Seth was speaking to him … "You should head home and enjoy your youth … it's all going to be downhill from here." The man ruffled his scales. "What is your name?"
"Toffee." He spoke, a rare showing of nervousness entering his voice.
"You've shown great dedication coming here alone. When the time comes, young Toffee, I'll be expecting you to be leading my army personally." He gently placed him back on his feet and edged him towards the exit. "You are a Serpantari…there is nothing that can get in your way."
Yes … nothing would stop him. Toffee gave a bright grin as he ran out the cave. "I'm going to lead an army!" He would bring the Serpantari glory.
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Rhina glared at John, laying on the ground. "I don't understand what the problem is." She said, small tears in her eyes. "I gave you everything. A loving home, a child, cooked food whenever you wished. I help you with your problems, why are you still so … horrible!?"
He returned her question with a kick to the stomach. "Maybe this is just me! Maybe I got stuck with this marriage instead of someone I genuinely wanted to be with!"
"You think I wanted this!? I went through this farce of a marriage to make our families happy! Why couldn't that be enough for you!?" She stumbled to her feet.
"You think I don't hear the comments! That my wife is a freak making crazy decisions all around and stuck within her own head!" He hit her face, sending her into a wall. "Now all I can do is scream out in rage whenever nobody is looking! You're the most disgraceful thing to ever-"
She couldn't make out the figure considering the blurry tears in her eyes and the ringing in her ears, but she was sure she heard someone scream "You bastard'' while tackling her abusive husband.
"You, what the hell are you…?!"
"You think you can assault the Queen of Mewni and get away with it!?" The familiar voice of her long time friend….her only friend really…Rose shouted as she bashed the bastard across the head with her shield. "You lowly, scum of the underworld, piece of filth!"
Her vision finally cleared, seeing the fight in full. "Rose …"
"You are just a knight! Stay out Royal affairs! " John shouted, fire emanating from his body.
"Do you think you'll actually get out of this unscathed!?" Rose shouted at the man. "The Commission alone will…!"
"The Commission will do squat, because unlike you, who piss them off at every turn, and my wife, who'd done nothing but create a holiday nobody celebrates, I make a good impression! Also, not to mention Rhina forced one of the Commission members with a fate worse than death!" How was that her fault? Raynoldo was so boring otherwise. "Plus I've already pumped the brat out of the bitch, she's already outlived her usefulness."
"You are an affront to love itself!" Rose slugged the man with a powerful shockwave of a punch, before grabbing him. "Rhina, put him to sleep, we'll figure out something after."
"No….he's just going to keep coming back…I'm ending this right now." Rhina threw off her glasses and started to solve her wand, aiming it directly at her 'husbands' heart. "I made a spell for us to fall in love, now I'll make one to break our hearts."
"Wait, Rhina, be careful how you word…!"
"With forces flowing through our air, and emotions flowing through our souls."She started, solving it as the wand began to glow. It may have taken a while to work it, but the reward was three times the magical power. "Sever the bond I placed between us and break this man's heart without a fuss!" She shouted, firing the beam.
Rhina and Rose stared at the demonic husband slumping in the pink woman's grasp, their chest opening up as their heart shot out, breaking into puzzle pieces. "You…you…"
"I…I just thought it would just make him lose interest in me and leave….I didn't mean to…I…" Rhina threw her wand to the ground and collapsed on her knees. "This was supposed to be easy…I just wanted things to go as smoothly as possible….what…what have I done?" She cried, the tears flowing like a facet.
Rose placed the man down, walking over and hugging her. "You defend yourself against someone trying to hurt you. You tried to end things peacefully and hurt someone by accident. This is not your fault."
"Isn't it though? I placed that STUPID love spell on myself and started this whole mess…" Rhina sniffed. "I trapped myself with a monster, I killed my daughter's father..I made everything worse for everyone."
"He would have hurt your daughter just like he hurt you." The Guard began to rub the back of her head. "You made nothing worse as long as you two are alright …"
"How…how can you stand to be near me after all I've done?" Rhina asked…pleaded with her only friend in the world.
"Because you're not a genocidal maniac … and sadly, that's my standard for bad people at this point in my life."
"Heh…heh…how puzzling.." She weakly joked as Rose kissed her injuries, the bruises, scratches, and burns disappearing in seconds. "So this is somehow not the worst relationship you've seen?"
"I will admit, it's up there, top ten at least…but it's not the worst." Rose said with a light smirk. "I have about two to four different species across six dimensions aiming for my head because of how badly I screwed up. Word of advice, never date a hive mind." She'd take the advice to heart.
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Glossaryck ate some of his pudding as he watched the argument of Crescenta and the Lucitors from the window. "I'm surprised you're not down there Pink. Aren't you the 'peace negotiator' of Mewni?" He turned to the gem.
"One, you know how much I hate you using that name…"
"Like anyone would understand the context if they heard it aloud. Half the time, the guards call you pinky."
"There's a reason why I never live in the castle." The diamond rolled her eyes. "And Second, I'm more likely to slap the Lucitor's across the face in my current state of quiet rage."
"Well … I doubt you're worse than her." He pointed to Emily holding back the previous queen from swinging a battle ax against the demon family. "At most you're usually just snarky in this state."
"I know…but this time it brings back too many memories." She turned to him, a curious glint in her eyes. "You saw this coming, didn't you?"
"Tried to warn her for a full week, but she either forgot my warnings, brushed them off, and by the time she casted the love spell it was too late." He shrugged. "She's been hiding the bruises and told me to keep quiet because she was sure 'she could handle it'." Glossaryck responded.
"You could've told anyone else…"
"You mean like how I asked you to retrieve my pants just when Rhina needed you?" That stopped the Diamond mid sentence. "Just like Lefty and Righty, I am capable of seeing the picture up ahead. How much I interfere is solely dependent on the owner of the spellbook, and whether or not they chose to heed my words at all."
She simply gave a disapproving hum. "Yep, some queens just listen more than others …" She sighed. "Tell me, does an 'omniscient' being such as yourself have regrets?"
"Giving my children sentience … ironic considering my parent made the same mistake." He guessed that was just the circle of life.
"Parents….the pain gets past down to the future no matter what." Rose sighed as she looked at the carriage carrying the little baby Celena. "You have no idea what comes ahead, and whenever you try to prevent trouble, it rears its ugly head despite how much you do."
"You know my life motto?" He asked her. "Not the ones I tell the queen, but my genuine one."
"Always carry pudding?"
"Well yes … but more expansively …" He pulled out a cup. "Life sucks, even the gods can make problems, and even plants can be cruel. It's all a meaningless cycle … but it does give us pudding." He smirked, handing it to her. "So enjoy the small treats while the world burns around you."
The diamond stared at him skeptically for a few seconds, before being drawn back by the cooing of Celena, who Pink picked up in her arms gently. "Yeah…this is a small moment I don't mind being stuck in." She looked at the baby, and he could just feel the hope and joy she was absorbing in this very moment. It would most definitely lead into what Rhina's riddle prophesied for her. Time would tell if his relationship with the diamond child would be just as interesting as the one with pink.