It was like nature itself was rebelling against the awful series of events that had taken place on this horrid day in history. The clouds in the distance, which had been predicted to be small and fluffy, or simply not there at all, were now unexpectedly gloomy and grey, a slight drizzle fell from them in certain areas.

Some solace was still apparent however, as the sun had decided to show itself for the event, right at the last few minutes. Toffee, fearing that the sun would blow his cover, decided to move from the hollow crevices of the Crystal-Pine tree to the relatively safer giant rose bushes, which towered above all else and obscured all light from falling inside. From there, he waited and watched, careful not to make a single noise, lest the guards find him and spike his head on the fluffy cake for the kicks.

He cursed under his breath, if he would be captured because he'd been enough of an idiot to listen to Midthios's pleas, then- Toffee stopped, noticing that things were finally moving along.

The various guests were gathered around the lavish celebration in the Castle Gardens, all gossiping and some admiring the beautifully bred roses that flooded the parklike area. There had been rumors that them and other flowers had been embowed with the magic of the wand by the Princess, who had always loved roses in particular. If not for the menacing, if tired looking, guards holding keep nearby, it would almost have been certain that some prebunctious guests would have stolen some for themselves, possibly taking the specimens for their own families and Kingdoms.

Despite the already gorgeous setting, Mewni had apparently seen the need to cover every last bare spot of the Gardens with tables and treasure and pillars of knowledge and conquest and glory. Truly, a botanist's nightmare. Even the guests seemed to be walking decorations, as even the poorest of the invitees wore lavish velvet and silk clothings, all shaped to the fad of the week. Most of the more wealthy guests wore even more outrageous dresses and suits, until it got to the point where many of them struggled to move or even clap their hands when told to. And of course, all of them wore some sort of violet and purple in their vestments, especially the other Royal families that had taken time out of their busy day to attend the ceremony. Purple was the royal color, after all.

Speaking of the other Royals, most, if not all of them were assembled for the momentous occasion. There were the Ponyheads, of course, with their proud King, who, coincidentally, was as violet pigmented as he was stubborn. With him came his entire family, save his wife whom had taken ill. Coming in with their fearsome fire and brimstone, the Lucitors were dressed the fanciest of them all. King Brandon Lucitor especially, his simple tie alone must have been carefully weaved by hand, with the most rarest of materials that could have been found in his dark and fiery Kingdom. In addition to the…. Non Mewmen Kingdoms, there were also a few Mewmen Kingdoms, none of them quite as prominent as Mewni, however.

With all the frivolous and festivities of the big event, you would expect the Princess of Mewni of all beings to be the most lavish of them all, perhaps branding a willowing dress that spoke for her, so she could spend all the time fixing the makeup that could change her very appearance at a whim.

But, to both Toffee's disappointment and relief, the "Rebel Princess" was not nearly as suffocated as he had expected her to be. She, of course, was still one of the most well dressed in the Garden, but she wore relatively modestly compared to what she could have wore. Most of her dress was an odd, pure pearly white, with a hint of dark blue around the edges. Toffee realized that she had been intentionally avoiding the color purple, as it probably disgusted her that the commoners of Mewni lived in destitute and ruin compared to the Nobles and Royal Family, whom wore the most rare and expensive pigment like it was nothing. Even without all the decor of a proper Princess, she still retained some sort of beauty, although more inner in nature. He wore a faint smile for the rest of the proceedings, although was scowling at the vows.

The priest standing behind a gold encrusted podium clapped his hands, and all went still and silent except for the Princess and a certain other Mewmen Prince, who more than made up for Eclipsa's lacking in fashion.

"Eclipsa Butterfly, Queen of Mewni, Protector of the Royal Mewmen Wand, and Light of the Kingdom, do you take Prince Galvin of the Phoenix Kingdom, third son of King Literyis the Valiant as your faithful spouse from now to death, from now to forever?"

Eclipsa's expression said it all; a dull grey look upon her face, all business and no room for anything else of the sort. Toffee could admire that moxy that she carried herself with, everywhere she went.

"Yes." she said simply, her hands clenched tightly on her abdomen. Toffee stared, something clicking in his mind.

Toffee didn't stick around for Galvin to respond, he succinctly slid through the tight gates of the main circle of the wedding, attempting to avoid any wandering eyes. He had made it to the far right end of the Gardens, which was full of gorgeous and towering white fountains, some almost as big as Midthios. His heart skipped a beat once as he accidentally brushed up against a young girl's shoe. Holding his breath, Toffee instantly rolled right into a relatively small but deep fountain, burying himself at the very bottom, away from any scrutiny.

The girl screamed, her mother and father then turning in surprise. Blubbering on about a 'snake', her parents silently comforted her in their arms. Toffee let out a small sigh of relief, then deciding to wait until all the guests had moved on from the general vicinity of the fountain.

Grumbling under his breath, Toffee knew that it was easier said than done. It would be many hours too late by the time he could see a viable opportunity, Eclipsa and Galvin had already left, and so had many of the royal families. The sun too, was beginning to dip down, and the beautiful three moons of the Mewni Dimension rose up in its place. Toffee slowly floated up to the surface of the fountain, air bubbles drifting monotonously around him.

Sighing in pure annoyance, he heaved himself out, shaking his saturated scales and soaked leather armor. At this point, he was too tired to make any semblance of security, as he shambled to the gates of the Garden, fumbling with the hard iron bars as he attempted to climb over the very pointy parts of the gate.

He was about halfway up, just getting the hang of coordinating his claws and the almost nonexistent ridges in the gate, when he heard a slightly hushed up yell, one he may not have noticed if not for his enhanced hearing. Toffee froze, keeping his entire figure still, not daring to look behind him and face the voice that had seemingly tracked him down.

He would either have to make a run for it, or, if the situation allowed, take the Mewmen behind him with him, as to not arouse any suspicions of an armored stranger fleeing the Wedding Garden. But then, Toffee realized, the Mewmen's disappearance would only add to the suspicious events that night. Unsure of what to do, he waited. Suddenly, the Mewmen spoke, her voice surprisingly familiar, although Toffee couldn't exactly place who it was.

"Pardon me?" she asked in a quiet, almost frightened voice."I don't think you're supposed to be here."

Toffee scoffed,"And what are you doing here?"

Immediately after that question, the girl gasped in surprise,"You…. Your voice! I recognize you from- Well…. A place."

It all came flooding back to Toffee. The nagging remembrance of the girl revealed itself like the snap of a jester. This girl… She was the Princess! She was Eclipsa…

Great. Now she's going to find out.

Toffee sighed, knowing that it was useless to hide anything now. He carefully stepped down the gate, keeping all eyes tracked on the Princess. Surprisingly, she wasn't very well dressed for the cold weather, seemingly wearing nothing but a small but thick robe. Upon further inspection, it came to Toffee that the robes Eclipsa was wearing were but pajamas. He had to chuckle from the absurdity of it all.

Eclipsa blabbered on, her eyes widening ever so slightly, "And- You're a- Lizard…."

"Look, Princess," growled Toffee,"You have a few options here. Well, actually, I'm lying. You need to come with me. My friend would most definitely like to see you."

Hoping to all hell that he wasn't making a horrible mistake, Toffee and Eclipsa silently made their way out of the Gardens, this time with the fashionable slight of Eclipsa's 'short cuts'. They slugged their way out of all semblances of civilization, the Gardens being only a few treks away from the furthermost reaches of the luscious Tangleweeds, which grappled and wavered around Toffee and Eclipsa, possibly sensing that the resulting gathering that was about to occur could not, and should not be stopped.

Unlike its more prominent neighbor, the quirky named: Forest of Certain Death, the Tangleweed Forest is of a quiet nature. While the Forest of Certain Death isn't exactly loud or rambunctious, it does always have a creature growling in the background, or the raucous noise of a poisonous waterfall cascading in the mist. But the Tangleweed Forest is always silent, except for the pit pat of visitors that sometimes drift into the Forest, most of whom are never to be seen again. Coupled with its almost instinctive abhorrence for Mewmens, the Forest is a perfect place for a Monster or two who wish to hide out the rest of their miserable existences.

While Toffee and Eclipsa were walking, Eclipsa suddenly shuddered to a halt, her eyes glued to the sight before her, which had been revealed with the passage of the mist. It was nothing too spectacular on its own, it was just a simple grass thatched hut, with a single window. It all seemed very normal to Eclipsa; the commoners of Mewni lived in very similar rentings.

What was off was the simple enormous scale of it all. The entire hut was gigantic in size, every last bit of it seemed to be specifically tailor made for a being at least three times as tall as the tallest Mewmen Eclipsa knew, which was her father.

While Eclipsa simply stood there silently, taking it all in, Toffee crept to the door, his stature sizable enough to just barely grasp the doorknob. Instead of pulling the door open however, he merely called out in a slithering soft voice,"Midthios? We…. Have a visitor."

A few small stepping sounds later, Eclipsa came face to face with perhaps the least expected person she could have guessed. A mildly dressed man, with coral tinted hair stopped out from a door that was way too large for his rather timid stature.

Both of their mouths dropped as they instantly recognized each other. Only a few moments after making eye contact, both of them snapped back to Toffee, Eclipsa frightful and the man with an angry expression.

"Why is Malik here? Did you capture him?"

"Toffee, why would you bring her here?!"

Eclipsa turned back to "Malik", an inquisitive feeling gushing over her. "Malik…. Do you know this Toffee fellow?"

He sighed, putting his hands to his face bitterly. "Yes…. No… Look. Let's just forget this happened. I understand it's been a tough week for you, but…"

Eclipsa scowled,"Why is it always like this with you? You always say these things like my problems don't matter! And now you apparently know this monster, who I'm pretty sure I've heard before!"

Smirking wildly, Toffee stepped in between the two,"Ladies, ladies, I can settle this. Eclipsa, this is Midthios. You might know him as Malik, but that's just him during the night. In the day, however…" Toffee looked up at the sky, which was unfortunately full of clouds. However, the sun was clearly far from rising. "He's a bit taller then he is now."

Eclipsa frowned at Toffee before turning back to glare at Midthios,"So…. Who are you, really? Seeing as how this 'Toffee' fellow is a monster, I would be forgiven for assuming you to be a monster as well!"

Midthios rubbed his chin and stared blankly at Eclipsa. After taking a quick glare at Toffee, he sighed and sat down, motioning for Eclipsa to sit down with him. She accepted his invitation, although reclusively.

"I guess it's too late to lie now," he said, clenching his fists."It's true. I am a monster."

Toffee waited for the gasp of surprise and resentment that was sure to come out of Eclipsa in waves, but it never came. She was surely the adaptable one.

"Hmph," Eclipsa said, sliding into eye level with Midthios. A smirk grew on her face,"So…. You're like a Wereboar. But… Different, somehow? Tell me you aren't a Wereboar."

Midthios snorted,"No. I think my bipedal body structure carries through with both of my forms."

They shared a laugh, then a warm mutual glance, their eyes lit aglow with soft embers. However, both Midthios and Toffee could recognize an odd atmosphere to Eclipsa; her breathing was rather deep and frequent.

Eclipsa sighed, sitting down on the wet, dark grassy ground, her feet crossed and expression exacerbated,"Now. Can you explain…. All of this?" Eclipsa waved her hands around the forest, and then at Toffee,"Why…. Me? What else have you been lying about?"

Midthios clenched his fists,"Not much else. For the most part, I've been completely honest. I never wanted to lie to you, but I knew that you wouldn't accept me for who I was."

Eclipsa scoffed,"Seriously? You think that matters to me, whether you're a Mewmen or a Monster? Besides, what about him?" she jabbed a finger towards Toffee, who was reclining onto a tree, his eyes raised."I know I've heard his voice before."

Midthios was silent. Instead of answering, he turned to Toffee, with a pained look in his eyes,"Why, Toffee? Why did you bring her here? What good could possibly come from her learning about us? We'll have to move out of the forest before Mewni's Knights come for us."

"Hey," Eclipsa said, frowning deeply,"I'm not going to sell you out, you know."

Midthios rolled his eyes, putting his arm around Eclipsa shoulders,"That's what they all say… Before they get you." he suddenly jabbed his hand at Eclipsa's back, causing her to nearly jump in surprise, then looking behind herself with scorn.

Sighing in frustration, Toffee stared silently and blankly at the squabbling couple. His dead serious eyes caused both of them to freeze, looking back at him, concerned. He spoke, his voice quivering as the light of dawn and the falling darkness of night seemed to coincide with each other.

"I brought us here together because…. Eclipsa is pregnant. And I don't know who the father is."

For a moment, every last living thing within a mile radius of the three of them seemed to go still and silent, all was stopping in the world as the gears of shock and fear started to turn slowly in Eclipsa and Midthios's heads, the rust flaking off and corroding their innards with a sickening feeling. And then after the first blast, another one hits, one vengeful at oneself for even thinking such dark feelings about what, in another time, in a more civilized place, may have been a happy moment.

Finally, Midthios spoke, perhaps with a hint of apprehension in his voice,"What do you mean,'I don't know who the father is?'"

Classic Midthios. Toffee thought, Always missing the bigger picture.

"As I'm sure you know, as you sent me to it instead of going there yourself, the wedding of Princess Eclipsa and Prince Galvin of the Pheonix Kingdom, out into the north, has came and went." speaking in a monotone voice, Toffee still somehow managed to gravitate the attention of both Eclipsa and Midthios.

"I noticed during the proceedings that Eclipsa wasn't wearing any luminous or frivolous clothing. Now, at first I assumed she didn't want to use a wasteful and expensive dress that she most likely would have never used again after the wedding. But what if that wasn't her reason? What if she was merely attempting to keep her unborn child, the heir to the throne of Mewni, unsmothered under the weight of an ungracious gown? Additionally, I observed her as she took her vows, she had been clutching her stomach. Furthermore, I've begun to notice that she's been wearing more air loose clothing. Her mannerisms and posture basically confirm it. She's pregnant. Care to refute me?"

Silence.

Eclipsa was glaring at Toffee, her expression one of pure distaste,"What exactly is your point here? If I was somehow able to conceive a child with Mali- Midthios, then there is no need to have such a deteriorating tone."

Good, pondered Toffee, his eyes glued to the Princess, She's as smart as she looks. That's either going to save her life, or ruin it.

"The thing is," began Toffee,"You've been in an arranged marriage with this Prince for a considerable time. More than enough time to consider betraying your 'true love'. As far as I know, it's impossible for a Mewmen and a Monster to procreate, and, at the very least, the track record for Mewmens deceiving Monsters is much better."

Typically, this would be the point when all would go silent, and someone, someone, would say something validating and meaningful, something that would be the final nail in the coffin. More often than not, this was how Toffee's true battles ended. That was how he knew he had defeated his enemy. How he knew he had an enemy.

But that was not the case.

"Are you done?" Eclipsa snapped, her fists slamming against her kneecaps, almost smudging up her pajamas. "How dare you think that I would even consider cheating on Malik with that disgusting, half souled, snobbish-" she calmed down for a bit, her gaze disheveled. "Not only that, but although I've been in my arranged 'marriage' for almost a year now, I have only ever been with him in person twice, once when we were introduced, and then at the wedding. Come on, say that I'm lying!"

Toffee didn't say anything. Midthios stood up instead, his eyes still not purified, fueled by jealousy."Why didn't you tell me? Why wouldn't you tell me that you were pregnant?"

Eclipsa snorted,"As if I had a chance. I wasn't the one who said you'd be at my wedding, five months in advance, and not even show up."

Midthios and Eclipsa both stood still for a few moments, their eyes scanning each other. Finally, it was like a long tempered fire was burning brighter than ever before. They embraced, right as the sun climbed over the horizon. Midthios's transformation was about to begin. Eclipsa closed her eyes in trepidation.

When it was all done, and she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw white. Just white, pure, snowy thistles of hair. The skin was obviously of a much redder complexion. And if Eclipsa had been able to see his face, she would have seen two pairs of eyes and a tooth filled smile.

Midthios murmured quietly,"Am I hideous?"

Eclipsa replied in typical Eclipsa fashion,"Nope."

Everyone and the universe had just taken a deep breath of relief. But there were still questions unanswered. How the two of them were going to handle a Monster - Mewmen hybrid, Toffee wasn't sure. He wasn't even clear if he even wanted to know what it would look like…..

Toffee remembered Eclipsa's response to his speech, which would normally crush someone. He had tried. He really tried. Gazing into those dark, but ensouled, eyes, he had hoped to see something - anything - that would push her case over the edge. But there was nothing to be seen. Nothing at all. There was nothing Toffee could say. Eclipsa had gotten him completely twisted up like a Swamp Dwelling Bog Snake. It was terrifying.

Toffee had finally met his equal.