Stardust

Stardust

Star couldn't wait.

Today was the day she would finally be able to meet her cousins.

Well, they weren't really her cousins, but her parents and the Rose-Schnee women were close enough companions for them to interact as family.

She'd heard a lot about Serra and Theo from March and Julius; her siblings had already met them many times when their mother usually brought them to play with the other children, even Yin and Drake. But Star always made sure to stay home or with her father. She had her reasons.

However, now it was her turn to finally meet Theo and Serra formally.

Presently, the young girl walked beside Sun, clutching excitedly to his hand. She had to admit she was a bit nervous. What if Serra and Theo were mean to her? What if they treated her like a baby? Or worst of all, what if they didn't like her?

Her father must have noticed the slight lag in her gait because he looked down at her curiously. “Hey, Twinkle-Twinkle. What's the matter?”

She looked up at him with wide, blue eyes.

“What if... they don't like me?” She whimpered.

Sun's eyes widened before he burst into laughter. “Aw c'mere you!” He scooped her up and she squealed with delight, hugging his neck as he perched her on his arm. “You're just like your mother. You worry too much! How could they /not/ love a cutie pie like you? If Aunty Weiss and me can get along, then you three can, too.” He grinned and kissed her forehead, earning a giggle from her when his beard tickled her skin. “Trust me hun, you'll be best friends in no time.”

He set her down again and they continued to walk. Star extended her tail and entwined it with his.

When they finally reached the Rose-Schnee residence, Sun brought his daughter directly to the front door and knocked once. He was barely halfway through his second knock when a click sounded, and the door opened in a swirl of red rose petals to reveal a woman much taller than Star, but just at her father's shoulder.

“Heya, Red!” Sun greeted.

“Hey yourself!” Ruby replied.

Star had met Ruby and Weiss before at family gatherings, so she wasn't fazed by the fact that the huntress had an artificial eye. It was a pretty silver color just like the real one, and it had the same, kind shimmer. “How's my little princess?” Ruby cooed, kneeling down and opening her arms.

Star jumped into her embrace, her tail curling happily. “Hi, Aunty Ruby!”

“So you're finally brave enough to meet Serra and Theo?” Ruby asked.

At the family meetings between the Rose-Schnee, Belladonna-Xiao Long, Wukong, Valkyrie, and the Arkos families, all of the other children had already been acquainted. But Star would always hide behind her father. She'd easily interact with Yin, Drake, Daniel, Mira, Alicia, Leda, and Thalia, and even the younger kids Phoebe and Rhea. But she always avoided Serra and Theo for some reason.

Velvet had been concerned at first and voiced her worries to Sun, and he'd replied with, “I'll handle it.”

And so here he was, setting up a private meeting for his youngest daughter to meet up with the brother and sister born of two of Vale's strongest and wealthiest women.

When Ruby asked Star if she was ready to meet them, the little girl seemed to finally realize what was about to happen. She nodded shyly before taking her father's hand again. Sun glanced to Ruby and shrugged at her. “She's usually so hyperactive and talkative, always dancing around and jumping. I dunno why she's so shy about your kids.”

“Well, let's just see how things go. Come on, Weiss and the kids are out back.” Ruby coaxed them into the house, leading them to the kitchen and out through the back door.

All the while, Star played with the ends of her skirt and the ribbons on her shirt, not knowing where to direct her attention. She was led outside again, onto a porch and then down a few steps into the grass. A woman with white hair down to her shoulders sat beneath a tree, reading a book. She looked up and removed her glasses when she realized her company had arrived.

Weiss got to her feet and cleared her throat, calling out to her children. “Theo! Serra! Someone's here to meet you!” She then made her way over to Sun, eyeing him a bit sternly. “Even after all these years, you sill refuse to button your shirt?” She sighed. “Just make sure your son doesn't pick up that habit of yours.”

“Aw, lighten up, Weiss.” He chuckled.

“I'm just glad Velvet has a bit more sense when it comes to matters of fashion and decency.” Weiss muttered. She then knelt down just as Ruby had done before, smiling at Star. “Hello, honey. It's been a while.”

“Hello!” Star went to her and hugged her, kissing her cheek in greeting. Weiss fixed the yellow star hair clip in her bangs and kissed her forehead.

Then, two pairs of footsteps could be heard approaching over the grass. Star quickly retreated to hide behind her father, clinging to his hand as her tail twitched nervously.

Theo was the first to greet her. He always went out of his way to say hello to her even at the family gatherings, so Star was not unfamiliar with him. His silver hair and kind eyes of a matching color were amiable as he peeked around Sun to find her gaze.

“Hi there!” He said. “Remember me?”

“Yeah!” Star nodded with a smile.

Sun shared glances with Weiss and Ruby, and it was clear he was surprised at her reaction, considering she'd been so nervous until now.

They soon found out Theo wasn't the problem.

The boy stepped to the side to let his sister get a glimpse of Star.

The Faunus girl instantly hid behind her father when she saw Serra. The older girl by one year had just opened her mouth to greet her, but her smile vanished immediately when she saw Star's reaction.

“Hey, what's wrong?” Serra frowned. She looked to Theo for an answer but he gave her a puzzled look. Her mothers seemed just as confused.

Sun tried to gently pry Star off his arm. “Hey, hey. Go say hello!” He said, patting her back. “How come you can say hi to all the other kids, but not Serra?”

“I-I don't bite!” Serra promised. She reached out to take both of Stars hands, squeezing them a little. “See?”

It was then Star finally looked up at the girl before her.

Star always like to say that her own hair was like milk-chocolate, and if that was the case, Serra's was dark-chocolate with a mix of strawberries. She wore it in twin-tails that dangled down to her shoulders, and her clothes were very similar to Star's. Her eyes were a pretty blue, a bit darker than Weiss's, but just as clear and inviting.

Star herself wasn't sure why she was so nervous about Serra. There was just something about her that made her fidget, made her want to hide somewhere.

Even now, her fingers wiggled uncomfortably in Serra's hands. Noticing this, the older girl loosened her grip, slowly letting her go. “Ah... okay. I guess I'm a bit scary, huh?” She took a step back.

Why did Star talk to her mothers and not her? Why did she smile at Theo and not her? Was it because she hadn't gone out of her way to say hello to her in the past? Serra always thought it would be best to leave her alone if she was so shy, but...

What had she done wrong? Or perhaps it was something she /hadn't/ done? Serra didn't know.

She sighed and looked hopelessly up at her mothers. Ruby and Weiss glanced to Sun briefly before the three of them silently decided to give it one more try.

“Come on, Twinkle-Twinkle.” Sun urged her, wrapping his tail around her shoulders and nudging her a step forward. “Just say hi! You can do it.”

“One more try, Serra.” Weiss said, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder.

“You can do it!” Ruby added.

None of them wanted Serra getting depressed over the ordeal. She looked to her brother and he nodded in encouragement.

So she tried again, seeking out the other girl's azure eyes that were almost exactly the color of her own. “Star? I've always thought you had a very pretty name.” She said in a softer voice. “Do you... know my name?”

Star looked up when she heard her name spoken by a new voice. Her tail flicked again, and her eyes widened a little.

“Y-Yeah!” She squeaked. “You're... Serra.”

“That's right!” Serra's face broke out into a smile instantly. She took the girl's right hand and turned her palm up. She traced her index finger over the smooth skin in five lines, crisscrossing them into the shape of a Star. “I'm Serra, and you're Star!”

When she had finished, Star lifted her hand up as if she could see the shape Serra had just drawn there. To the rest of the world, it was invisible, but to her it was vivid, lively-

-magical.

It was as though Star underwent a transformation in that moment; her expression brightened, tail swishing, eyes shimmering as she beamed a smile. She threw her arms around Serra with a delighted laugh, and Serra returned the hug.

Theo chuckled softly as he looked on, and their parents did the same, relieved, thankful, and hardly aware of what would lie ahead.

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From then on, the two young girls were nearly inseparable. Even though there was some distance between their families' houses, the they would constantly beg their parents to let them meet up in the park that marked the halfway point between the streets.

Star still wasn't sure why she had been so nervous of Serra in the beginning. She wouldn't find out for a while yet.

Serra was simply glad the younger girl had finally started conversing with her, and did so now of her own volition. She would even go so far as to say she was Star's favorite person now.

Hardly a day went by of them meeting when Serra wasn't jolted by an excited cry of her name, followed instantly by a forceful plow into her back as Star clung to her, tail curling enthusiastically.

On some occasions, the greeting hug was more passionate than others; the day Serra was given her new pink cape by her mothers, she was nearly knocked off her feet in the middle of the park.

“Seeeerrrraaaa!” Star jumped up and leaped onto her back. “You got a new cape! Wow, wow, it looks so cute!”

“Star!” She coughed. “I'm-! Not your personal tree, you know!” It'd taken a least eight spins on Serra's part until Star was dizzy enough to dislodge herself, giggling.

The day Sun bought Star her favorite pair of sneakers, Serra was knocked off her feet completely.

“SEEERRRRAAAA!!” Star threw herself onto the older girl's back and bowled her over flat onto her face with an “Oomf!”

“Star! I'm not your personal tree! And even if I was, I'd have to call timber! What-”

“Serraaaaa!” She squealed, nuzzling her face into the back of Serra's neck, their different shades of brunette hair mixing like milky coffee. “Daddy bought me these suuuper cool shoes they're suuuper cool! Look, look!”

Grunting with effort, Serra rolled herself over onto her side and Star let her go, jumping to her feet to show off the pink sneakers with yellow wings on the sides. “Aren't they the coolest?! I'm like a magical girl!” She gave an experimental spin, waving her arms out and imagining pink and purple patterns swirling from her fingertips. “In the name of truth and justice, I, Star Wukong, will-!”

“Help me up?” Serra suggested meaningfully. Star halted in her pose before chuckling, offering her hand down to her friend. “Sorry, sorry. I was just so excited!” She pulled Serra to her feet and helped dust her outfit off.

“I can tell.” Serra sighed, readjusting her twin-tails a bit. Star plucked a leaf from atop her head before meeting her eyes, still bouncing, tail curling in that way it did whenever she was happy.

“Soooo...? Whaddaya think??” She spun again, skirt fluttering as she tried to show off her new shoes.

“They look great on you.” Serra agreed. “But don't just go spinning around like that.” She stepped forward and smoothed out Star's skirt.

“Geez, you sound like Aunty Weiss.” Star sighed. “But you really think they look cool?”

Serra rolled her eyes playfully. She reached for Star's hand and traced a familiar shape in her palm. “Yes. They're very cool and super awesome.”

Hearing her say that was the icing to her cake, and Star couldn't contain her joy. Grabbing Serra's hands, she spun them around in circles. Serra stumbled a bit at first, but soon followed along, her laughter joining Star's and filling the air.

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The two girls ended up going to school together along with their siblings for a time.

Though the older children were a few years ahead of them, Serra and Star were only one grade apart. Their school days were enjoyable, full of laughter as they walked to and from school every day, nervous whispering as Star met Serra in the hallways before a quiz, and dramatic groaning about studying for exams which quickly turned to eagerness when Serra offered to help her.

Presently, it was the year when March, Julius, and Theo were already graduates from the elementary school, leaving the two youngest siblings alone together without them.

Serra was eleven and Star ten years old. The day was just a normal one like any other, and the two of them were in the cafeteria for lunch. They sat at a table that consisted mostly of Faunus children, chatting and laughing together.

When Serra accidentally kicked the table and her glass of milk nearly spilled, Star's tail shot out to save them from a mess and stained uniforms.

“Thanks.” Serra smiled.

“No prob!” Came the beaming reply.

But before Serra could turn back to converse with her friends, she noticed the glares of the children sitting across the room from them. They were all humans, and all awful, discriminatory ones at that.

A few of the girls had tried to persuade Serra to sit with them multiple times, declaring that the Faunus children would “give her fleas” or “make her smell like wet fur”.

But Serra refused every time, always trying to be polite with just a bit of her mother Weiss's deadly subtle implications in her tone. Ever since Theo and the others had graduated, she found the other kids had been more focused on her, as if they were making sides and wanted Serra on theirs.

Even now, they snickered and glared at her and the children seated around her with ears and tails. Serra's shoulders stiffened and she glared back just as icily, silently warning them to mind their own business.

Star noticed how she fell silent to the furrow in her brow and popped her face into Serra's vision. “What's the matter?”

Serra swept her gaze around the human children one more time in warning before directing her attention back to her friend.

“It's nothing.” She smiled.

But after school that day, she found it would turn into something.

Star was staying behind with one of her teachers for a quick explanation on some math work. Serra stood outside the school building, leaning back against the brick wall as she looked up at the sky, finding images in the clouds as she waited.

But when she heard footsteps approaching, she immediately knew they weren't Star's. They were too slow, too many, and too threatening.

“Oh, hey look!” A boy's voice called out. “It's the monkey-lover!”

“And it's not just monkeys!” A girl added. “She likes anything with fur.”

“Don't get too close or you'll catch her fleas.” Another warned.

Serra sighed to herself and looked up. There were six of them, all standing about ten feet away to maintain distance. Normally, she would've countered all of their remarks or just ignored them.

However, she discovered their hands held certain things she could not ignore.

But Serra didn't run away, even when they started hurling the pebbles at her. She stood her ground, head up, shoulders back, hands balled into defiant fists. Rocks scored all over her body, most stopping at the fabrics of her uniform, but some left small red marks on her skin.

“Say whatever you want!” She snarled. “Faunus are people, too!”

“Yeah, right! They're just animals!”

Another blow on her cheek sent her stumbling back, but she recovered and faced them head-on. Fury and frustration blazed in her eyes, but she didn't act. Her mothers had always told her never to use violence against other children unless she absolutely had to for self-defense. But Serra could handle this without physical retaliation.

The other children kept laughing, tossing rocks, saying such horrible things that Serra was glad there was no one else around.

However, when a particularly large pebble hit her forehead and blood started to flow down the bridge of her nose and over her eye, the children fled. Serra stood tall until they had gone, eyes stern and vengeful.

Then, she lost herself to the quivering of her lower lip and began to sob softly at the things they had said; the pain in her face as well as in her heart. She lifted her hand up, but before her fingers could make contact with the wound, the footsteps she had been waiting for sounded.

Serra didn't have enough time to try to run or hide before Star was upon her.

“Seeerrrraaaa! I'm done! I'm-!” The Faunus girl skidded to a halt before she could hug her friend. She saw the blood and panicked instantly. “S-Serra...?” Her smile vanished and her eyes wavered. “Serra!” Star threw her arms around her and wailed her name. The older girl's heart was pounding harshly and she could feel it thrumming in her chest. “Serra? Serra? Serra!” All she said was her name, and yet she was asking so much: “what happened?” and “are you okay?” and “I'm so sorry, this happened because of me!”

Serra returned the hug with shaking arms and the two girls fell to their knees as they let the tears fall.

“It's okay...” Serra murmured. “I'm okay... I'm just glad it wasn't you they hurt...”

Star pulled back to look at her face. “No! It's my fault this happened! It's because you hang out with me!” She reached one hand up to brush Serra's bangs away, revealing the wound that still bled freely. “It's my fault...”

“No it's not!” Sensing her friend wanted to pull away and run from her in shame, Serra wrapped her arms tightly around Star. “This happened because I let it happen. I'll never regret it!” She was shouting now as tears spilled down her face. “I'll... I'll never regret being friends with you, Star!”

The Faunus girl started to cry harder when she heard those words, wailing aloud as she clung to her friend. A soft tail wrapped around Serra's waist, and it was steadying, supportive, protective.

Star spoke calmly then, only interrupted by a few sniffles. “Now it's my turn...” Serra looked up at her, and their blue gazes locked. “In the name of truth and justice, from now on I, Star Wukong, am going to protect you, Serra. I'll always be by your side for the rest of eternity and no one came come between us.” She leaned forward and kissed Serra's cheek, and she realized she had never done so before to Serra at the family gatherings.

Serra was silent for a minute before she embraced Star again. “We'll protect each other.” She whispered. “Because we're gonna be partners.”

She felt Star's arms squeeze her tighter.

“Yeah!” She agreed. “Partners!”

Serra found the girl's hand and traced a criss-crossed figure over her palm.

By then, the tears had stopped and light laughter surrounded them.

A few moments later found the teachers rushing to the scene, helping the girls up and calling for medical assistance as they were led to the infirmary. It only took about fifteen minutes for their parents to arrive, still dressed in their work attire.

Weiss stood beside her daughter and held her hand as the medical personnel hovered over her, dabbing the wound and cleaning it with disinfectant. Serra occasionally flinched and squeezed harder when a sting of pain ran through her, but she never cried out or complained.

Weiss's other hand held to Ruby, and her wife held their son in place; Theo had been coming home from school when he'd received Ruby's message about what was going on. He kept muttering in time with his younger mother about how he wanted to know who the children responsible for this were, how he'd like to hold them upside down by their ankles until they apologized.

Ruby was seething that they'd hurt her daughter, and she could tell Weiss was, too; she was just better at hiding it. But her wife's jaw was set in a firm line, her eyes blazing with silent, icy wrath, shoulders tense.

Serra fidgeted a bit as her parents continued to talk to the school staff about identifying the other children and proper punishment.

On her other side, Star sat on the bed and clung to her arm. Like Theo, Julius and March had come directly from school, and were both presently growling under their breaths.

“Easy there, sport.” Sun patted his son's shoulder. Likewise, Velvet was running her hands through March's blonde hair, smoothing over the ruffled fur of her ears until she unclenched her fists.

All the while, Star never let go of Serra, even when the doctor had finished treating her. The wound would leave a scar, and both of her mothers visibly flinched at that.

But even days and weeks afterward, she never once complained about it or regretted it. “Because I love Star more than I resent them” she had told her family one night at dinner.

To hear such a phrase from such a young girl... Ruby and Weiss had both stood and went to embrace her gently, stroking her hair and kissing the top of her head. Theo sat across from her, his eyes shining with pride.

Serra would never regret her scar or her best friend.

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The two girls continued to meet as they always had, in the park, walking to school, and then back home together.

Even three years after she'd received her scar, Serra never once complained about it. Her bangs grew out a little longer and covered it so most people never even knew it was there. But Star always made it a point to remind Serra how grateful she was for standing up for the Faunus.  She often kissed the scar, usually followed by a brief hug. Though Serra's reaction was always to be flustered, she decided it was okay since she could hide her expression as she hugged Star until she had calmed down again.

However, just as frequent as the kisses were the playful pokes, and Serra had to be on her guard for whichever she was in for that day.

During this year, another important thing happened for Serra.

She had been at the Wukong's house to help study with Star and teach her math, but once they had finished, the deal was they could go play outside.

Star liked to practice her magical girl poses, and needed Serra to help pose with her. Despite how many times Star had stepped on her friend's cape, and Serra had stepped on her friend's tail, they always ended up enjoying themselves.

That day, Star mentioned how she had lost her white ribbon and couldn't do magical girl poses without it. Instead, she had been dangling upside down from a tree branch by her tail, trying to do pull-ups.

Serra trudged over to her with sigh. “Star, get down from there!”

“Ehhh? But it's really nice up here...” She whined. “You should join me!”

“You're going to fall and die young!” Serra snapped.

Star grinned cheekily in response. “You'll catch me when that happens, right?”

“Can we not talk about this now-”

A foreboding crack.

“Oh, Dust- Waaaaaah!” Star cried out as she fell, the ground rushing up at her dizzyingly. Serra reached up quickly to catch her, making sure Star was safely in her arms before she was knocked down onto her back with the younger girl on top of her. “Ahh... huh?”

Star was seeing the shapes of her namesake for a second until she creaked open her eyes, realizing her landing had been soft. She opened her eyes to find herself looking at the pink cape over Serra's shoulder, her dark-chocolatey hair tickling her nose. “S-Serra!” She squeaked in apology.

The older girl groaned as she pushed herself up on her elbows, Star refusing to get off of her. “I told you you'd fall, you idiot.” She sighed.

Star wasn't guilty about it for long, though. She leaned down and kissed Serra's cheek.

“I was right about you catching me, though!”

Serra's face was still red from the kiss, her heart pounding faster. “Never again...” She muttered, burying her chin and face down into the front of her cape.

Star giggled and nuzzled into the girl's shoulder. “Thanks for catching me, partner!”

“...We aren't partners yet.” Serra grumbled. “N-Now get off of me!” She huffed, rolling the Faunus girl over.

“Right!” Star jumped to her feet and offered her hand down. Chin still buried in her cape, Serra avoided eye contact as she accepted. Star chuckled and dusted her off.

Just before Serra headed home that day, she was in the bathroom, washing her hands clean of grass stains when she noticed a string of white on the sink. She'd never seen March wear anything like it, and she doubted it belong to Julius or one of their parents.

“Isn't this Star's ribbon...?” She wondered to herself. Slowly, she brought it to her chest in front of the mirror, tying it experimentally onto the front of her cape.

“Mm. It looks good on you!”

Serra was about to voice her thanks to the compliment. Until she realized who it was.

“Star!” She shrieked, jumping back as her heart went to her throat.

“What a reaction...” The Faunus mused.

“Ah, you're searching for this right? S-Sorry I got a bit carried away and-”

“No, don't be!” Star waved her hand dismissively. Serra stopped stammering, feeling just how warm her face had become now and ducking her chin again. Star reached to the ribbon at her cape and tightened the bow. “It looks good on you! You keep it!” She said. “I have extra anyway. And now we'll match!”

“M-Match...” Serra sunk her face deeper into her cape. She really liked that idea, the idea of sharing something with Star that no one else could.

“Yeah!” Star showed her toothy grin. “We're partners after all!”

Serra felt pang go through her chest every time that word was spoken. They weren't partners yet, not officially anyway; Serra was one year older and wouldn't graduate with Star, so they wouldn't be in the same grade together when they finally reached Beacon in several years' time, meaning they could never be partners. She feared they would only ever be partners during their free time together, but never like they wanted to be.

Suddenly weighed down by such thoughts, Serra's shoulders slumped. She wanted to think about something else.

“You... had extra ribbons all this time...” She muttered, remembering Star had been searching for one.

“Ahaa yeah! Guess I do!” She laughed, taking Serra's hands in hers and squeezing them. “But you keep that one!” She traced a star in her friend's palm before closing the distance between them, hugging Serra tightly. “Keep it, Serra.” She murmured.

Serra's hands found their way to her back. “Okay.”

She let her chin rest on the smaller girl's shoulder for a moment, savoring the contact.

When Star pulled back, she then pointed her index finger to the ribbon on Serra's chest, lightly making an X shape over her collar. “It'll be like keeping me close to your heart!” She gave a smile then unlike any other, genuine and joyous. Serra wondered if the girl felt her heart skip a beat at that moment.

“Idiot.” She pulled her in closer again, hiding her blush over Star's shoulder. “Of course you're always in my heart. And you always will be.”

Star giggled delightedly and kissed the side of her cheek. Serra steeled herself and returned the gesture.

“And you'll always be in mine!”

When Serra finally returned home that day, she was sure her face was still red. She zipped past Weiss where she sat reading in the living room, rushing to her room and diving beneath her blankets to hide the pinkness in her cheeks.

“Serra?” Weiss was in her doorway a minute later. “If you're back, at least say you're home.”

“I-I'm home!” Serra's muffled cry came from her pillow.

Weiss was no fool. She treaded quietly as she entered her daughter's bedroom, sitting on the edge of her bed. “Is there something you want to talk about?” She rested a hand on the top of Serra's exposed head, curling her fingers through her hair gently.

Slowly, the blankets rolled down and Serra looked up at her mother with uncertain blue eyes.

“Mama? I... want to ask you about something.”

Serra had thought long and hard about her decision, longer and harder than any other fourteen-year-old had probably ever thought about something. She talked it over first with Weiss, then with Ruby, and even a little with Theo. They all told her she was needlessly worrying about the ordeal, told her she should do whatever she felt was right, whatever would make her happiest.

“But-!” She'd looked up to her mothers, conflicted. “Are you... sure it's okay for me to...?”

“Of course it is, darling.” Weiss had kissed her forehead. “We all know you'll be much happier this way.”

“Don't worry about it.” Ruby had smiled. “We know you're one of the smartest kids in Vale. And if this is the choice you're making, there's no way it's a mistake.”

Serra had thought on it some more and then more after that. Until finally she'd confirmed her decision and told the rest of her family when she was certain.

All they'd had for her were words of congratulations and encouragement.

She'd requested to be taken to Star the following day, and they all went along with her. Ruby, Weiss, Sun, and Velvet were aware of the situation, and all were welcoming it with open arms.

Once the Rose-Schnees had arrived, the Wukongs called out for Star.

“Hey, Twinkle-Twinkle!” Sun hollered. “Ya got some company!”

The rest of them stood in the doorway, waiting. A slight commotion was heard from inside the house.

“What's the matter with you?” March groaned.

“No! I wanna be alone!” Came Star's pouting voice.

“Ugh.” March rolled her eyes as she made eye contact with her mother. “She's been complaining a lot recently about how Serra's gonna be moving on a year ahead of her. How she's gonna be-”

“Left all alone!” Star wailed.

“Come on!” Julius was urging his youngest sister. “Serra's here.”

“Serra?” Star's mood brightened entirely and instantly as she turned to the front door. “Serraaaa!” She tore away from her siblings, shot between her parents, and jumped into her friend's arms. “What are you doing here?”

Ruby had reached out to support Serra, lest both girls tumble backward onto the ground. “Serra's got something to tell you.” She declared happily.

The rest of them were silent a moment as Star pulled away, seeming to remember why she had been in a slump that morning in the first place.

“You're... You're gonna be moving up a year soon...” She sighed. “And then you'll graduate and move on to Beacon before me and we'll never be partners. I mean... w-we can still meet up at the park and stuff in our free time, but-”

“Idiot!” Serra bonked her forehead against Star's, sending her back a pace. “Stop crying and listen to me for a second!” She rubbed her sleeve over Star's cheek to dry her tears. Star sniffled, lower lip quivering as she waited for Serra to continue.

The older girl smiled. “I've talked it over, and thought about it for a long time.” She said.

Then, her azure eyes met Star's, and it was like four small oceans fused together when their gazes locked, deep and wondrous. “I'm... going to be staying back a year in school. So we can be in the same grade together, and go to Beacon together.”

For a moment, the world seemed to freeze.

No one spoke, though their parents and elder siblings were already smiling, knowing full-well what was to come.

Star was still staring wide-eyed at her best friend. “You're... You're gonna...” She shook her head to clear it, reaching up to pinch her cheek to make sure this was real.

Before Serra could blink again, Star was upon her, hugging and nuzzling and kissing her everywhere.

“Serra, Serra, Serrraaaaa!!” Star squealed, peppering kisses all over her cheeks.

“W-W-What are you doing?!” Serra shrieked. Heart heart rate leaped into overdrive as she tried to pry the girl off of her.

“Kissing you! We're gonna be partners so we gotta get used to kissing!” Star squealed. She kissed Serra's cheeks, her brow, her scar.

“Our parents are watching!” Serra cried. “And just what kind of partners are you even-” But she cut off when she felt Stars lips brush over her own lightly. Her heart definitely stopped then.

“Partners!” Star smooched her cheek again. “We're gonna be partners!”

By this time, their parents and siblings had snuck quietly away into the house to leave them alone.

Serra was frozen in place, not sure what to do as Star continued to smother her, laughing giddily all the while. “Partners! Partners! We're gonna be partners!” She kept repeating.

At last, Serra composed herself enough to return the energetic hug with a softer one. “Y...Yeah...” She mumbled. “P-Partners...”

Gathering every once of courage in her body, she leaned forward and kissed Star's cheek, holding to her tightly now. Star squealed again, locking her arms around Serra's waist and back. She lifted her into the air and spun her, leaving the older girl yelping in surprise.

Star landed on her back in the grass, not letting Serra away from her embrace as she rested on top of her. She was still laughing merrily, and there was even a tear rolling down one cheek. Serra smiled a little and brushed her cheek against Star's to dry it.

“Yeah...” She murmured again. “We're gonna be partners.” When she finally realized just what that meant, she felt herself joining in with Star's laughter, lightly at first before it gained momentum.

Star kept kissing her forehead, and Serra returned a few of them as well, feeling a tail sweep around her back.

Star felt she realized why she used to be so nervous about Serra then. It was because they had always been fated to be together, and perhaps she just hadn't been sure how to go about interacting with such an important person.

At long last, the two girls sat up, facing one another.

“Partners!” Star was still whispering excitedly. She reached forward to adjust Serra's white ribbon. Serra did the same for hers, tightening the loop that sat in the same position on Star's collar.

She then took Star's hand, turned her palm up, and dusted her index finger over the skin in a familiar shape. Star took her had and did the same for Serra.

Their eyes met again, and they leaned in to place matching kisses on the other girl's cheek before locking in another tight embrace.

Their joyful tears mixed with their elated laughter, tail curling and hearts beating fast.

“Partners.” They whispered together.

And it was the promise of a lifetime.

[Fin.]