Hello everyone! This chapter is a bit of a two-parter, more so because I wanted to give you guys something and want to expand on the training scene the final line leads into. Regardless, hope you enjoy this chapter!
Xzbro - This isn't a story where Marco has his own little group of admirers, but I will play with his bonds with others strengthening.
Starco4everr - Thank you.
viceversa96 - Interesting comments, but if you've read stories I've written like 'Connecting Troubled Souls', you might get a slight insight as to what happened in the past. Not the same events exactly, but a focus for the arc following this one dives directly into Star's history with Tom and how they fell out as friends. I respect canon for trying to dive into Star's dynamic with Tom being different than the one with Marco but it felt so half-hearted in execution. We KNEW she would pick Marco over Tom as early as the start of S3, so the entire 'who will she choose?!' bit felt needless come S4. I'm going to have a lot of fun fleshing out their bond and showing, not unlike how Blackwolf wrote Tom and Star, how they can become friends after much tension.
Hellish flames brushed past Marco's shoulder as he and Nachos drove away from her, the baren landscape painting his vision. All around Marco, was the remains of the fabled Ember Forest, one of the few lively areas in the Neverzone. But she had to try and hunt me. Marco bitterly thought, his body exhausted from running for three days in a row. Even poor Nachos looked tired, and the dragon cycle loved driving across these stomping grounds.
Making a tight drift, Marco gave a look to Nachos, letting his trusty steed know his next move. Leaping off the dragon cycle, Marco gripped his longsword, striking Hekapoo square in the face, but her form fizzled out, her annoying laugh echoing across the charred landscape. "How many times are you going to resist loser?"
"Until you leave me alone," Marco replied coldly, annoyed his voice wasn't deeper. Curse my fifteen-year-old body. He shook his head and charged at Hekapoo again, but the fire witch simply fizzled out yet again. "Why won't you die!?" Marco shouted, anger getting the best of him.
Hekapoo gave Marco a toothy grin, her body multiplying. Instead of just one of her, Marco was not surrounded by nearly twenty versions of her. "I dunno, maybe cause it's fun messing with you?" She teased, carelessly shooting fire at him. Marco blocked the blow, but soon enough, her clones continued shooting flames in his direction. Blocking and slashing the magic away, he tried his best to keep his defenses, but his knees eventually gave in, falling to the warm ground beneath him. "To think, you could have been a fun apprentice," She sighed, one of her clones coming forward. "Oh well, time to finally kill you kid." She charged at Marco, but he grabbed her by the neck.
The other clones gasped in shock as Marco slowly got to his feet, seeing his brown eyes turn a shade of purple. "Y-You… Won't end me…" Marco crushed her neck, the clone vanishing in a puff of smoke. "I… I must find…" Marco's eyes turned brown once more, collapsing on the ground. "Star… Meteora… Mina…"
Nachos rode up to Marco, using her wings to shield him from the enraged clones. Marco could bearly keep his eyes open as they burned holes through Nacho's wings. Eventually, a powerful lighting surge struck the ground, frighting the clones and causing them to scurry away. Marco forced himself to his feet, letting out shaky breaths. "N-Nachos…" He put a hand on her back, seeing the remains of her wings. "Girl… I'm sorry for being weak."
Nachos just purred, nudging her head in Marco's hand. Scratching under her chin, Marco started crying, eventually hugging his steed and letting the rain overtake them both.
"Nachos!" Marco bolted from his bed, purple eyes looking frantically around his room. Oh… The academy. Marco let out a shaky breath and patted his cheeks. Looking at his right hand though, he frowned. Pulling up his sleeve, he saw his shoulder's mark. It was glowing of all things, Marco gritting his teeth as he mumbled some low Mewman to himself. The glow eventually vanished, as did the purple coloring on his right arm. Can't… Deal with that right now. Getting out of his bed, he walked to the mirror and studied himself.
Part of Marco felt proud of his rugged body, the scars showing his experience as a warrior. But that shouldn't have happened. He frowned, freehand brushing against the scars covering his face, the large one down his two eyes. I should have earned them protecting Star. Throwing on his uniform, he felt relieved not seeing the scars any longer.
He grabbed his satchel, containing his lesson plans for the day and paused upon looking at his blade. The red sheen almost stared at him, but he just grinned at the blade, picking it up and putting it in his scabbard. Leaving his room, Marco made his way to the stables, hoping his girl was adjusting to their new home.
To his surprise, no one was out and about, considering it was the morning. Classes are later… Marco figured as he shrugged his shoulders. He found the stables, which wasn't too far from the outskirts of the classrooms and the dining hall. "Oh my, didn't know you liked carrots," Marco rose an eyebrow, seeing Moon sitting before Nachos and feeding his steed carrots of all things. "I swore my husband said your kind enjoyed raw meat."
"Dragoncycles enjoy all food," Marco commented, standing next to Moon and folding his arms. He couldn't help but smirk at Nachos puffing some smoke in the woman's direction, causing her to cough lightly. "Though my girl loves cooked meat the best, isn't that right sweetie?" Marco scratched under Nacho's chin, causing her to purr loudly. He turned to Moon and gave a genuine smile. "Thank you, for letting her stay with the Waricorns and Pegasus'. I… I went through a lot with Nachos here."
"I can tell, she looks strong," Moon smiled, her gloved hand touching Nacho's head. "She sees you as her father," Marco's eyes went wide for a moment, earning a laugh from Moon. "You would be surprised by the trouble I got into as a young girl. Riding animals was a past time, one that I think my daughter took after."
Marco laughed weakly, recalling how Star rode Nachos. She would be a wonderful rider. Seeing how warmly he smiled, Moon got up and started walking off. "Oh, and I do wonder your lesson plan for today, considering your mission this month."
"I got some ideas, but I'll run them by you and the other professors later," Marco replied. Moon seemingly pleased by the response left the stables and Marco continued petting Nachos. She's trying to get close. Marco's smile turned into a thin line. She… She seems earnest. Then again, people in the Neverzone did too. Rubbing his right arm, he sighed and got up.
Sitting in the Training Yard, Marco rubbed his chin as he flipped through a book. This is an odd one. Marco's eyes landed on a reanimating spell, one that would hypothetically make objects move as if they were alive. After leaving the stables, Marco spent the past hour getting his 'lesson' ready, though a large part of it involved training moving targets. I can't be the dummy every time. Marco laughed to himself, trying to move as the book instructed.
He made careful-dance like movements before shoving his hands forward, but nothing escaped his hands. "Ah, so that's where the book of spells went," Marco didn't turn around, hiding his smile seeing Janna walk toward him. "Wanted that puppy for years but couldn't find it. Yet, here it is." She waved her hands dramatically, having a blank look on her face. "In the hands of the teacher for the Princess." She leaned in Marco's face, the blank expression turned into a dark smile. "Interesting. Did the Empress give it to you?"
"No, I found it," Marco answered, figuring being honest wouldn't hurt. Janna mouthed 'sure' as she took the book from his hands. "Hold on a moment, that's mine." Marco nearly shouted but Janna held up one of her hands. The other hand, effortlessly cast the spell he was trying to make. Bright light struck the dummy as it moved around like a puppet. "...Oh, so that's how you do it."
She threw the book, Marco catching it haphazardly. "You need to have high reasoning skills to use magic. Though since you can use basic fire spells, you are half-way there I guess," Janna threw an arm around Marco's shoulder. "Say, how about we strike a deal," Marco raised an eyebrow.
"This involves you joining my house, doesn't it?" Janna smirked, Marco's eyes twitching. "And what are you after? I can't give you this, I need it to teach magic to my students." Janna's smirk never left.
"That's fine, but I learn alongside the Princess. I figure… She would be a master at a lot of these spells." Janna's face turned dark for a moment, looking away from Marco. "Plus… I'm having a bad feeling about my house anyway."
Why? Marco wanted to ask but choose not to. Don't force people to open up, give them time. Marco put a hand on Janna's shoulder, giving a warm smile to the mage. "Welcome to the Butterfly House, though I will have to report Soloria to make this official."
"Cool," Janna took the book out of Marco's hands. "Now, let's get things 'exciting' for my new friends." She flipped through various pages and shot spell after spell at the practice dummies and even the ground. Marco felt his back sweating, wondering if this was a good idea or not.
"Really?" Soloria spat out some of her food, bits of corn hitting Marco's face. She mouthed 'sorry' as Marco cleaned off the crumbs. "So soon people want to join your house… Better step my game up," She chuckled, with Marco giving her a concerned look.
"She said she was worried about the Lucitor House, do you know what that means?" Marco asked earnestly, biting into his toast. He called his fellow teacher for breakfast in the dining hall to discuss Janna's request. Better sooner than later. Soloria rubbed her chin, eyes narrowing in thought.
"I suppose, she doesn't fit in with the other students," She started, elbow leaning on the table. "She wants to master magic and you got some interesting mages in your house. Then again, my records show her being very interested in the demonic arts," Marco folded his arms, intently listening. "She's one of the few non-marked students in my house, being attracted to the Prince."
"So why does she want to join my house?" Marco asked, ignoring the main reason. Not letting anyone know about the spellbook. Marco had a hunch people knowing about that would be a problem. Then again, why did Glossaryak give me it?
"I don't mind, fewer students to teach, the more I can focus my training," Soloria smiled, putting a hand on Marco's shoulder. "But treat Janna well. I might try poaching one of yours now if more knock on your door."
"Sounds fair," Marco smiled, eating into his toast. Marco winced though at how bland his food tasted. "Got any jelly? Think my food is burnt." Soloria simply laughed, harshly elbowing Marco and continuing her meal. He sighed and ate his boring food.
Walking to class, Star felt as if her legs were stone. Why was the past day so stressful? She bitterly thought, having to deal with guilt and her 'understanding' mother. Shaking off the annoyance, she fixed her posture. After all, a proper princess can't sag her shoulders. Star took a deep breath and sighed.
She didn't have to even turn around to tell Toffee was following her as usual. She smiled at her aid, pausing to let him walk in-step with her. "Could tell your mother was charming as ever."
"She's a character, that's for sure," Star mumbled, eyes looking around to ensure no ears were listening. "You gave me a note this morning about Janna following Marco. What's that all about?" Toffee folded his hands behind his back, looking up in the sky.
"It seems our dear professor got the attention of the Lucitor's most powerful asset. And to think, all it took was procuring your family's 'mythical' spellbook." Star paused her step, eyes wide in shock. I burned that thing to ash. Star vividly remembered doing so before coming to the academy. The 'fire' set to her room was an accident after all… That annoying… Star glared at her hands knowing who fixed the book. "He's our professor, so I don't see the issue here milady."
Star turned toward Toffee on a dime, having a heated glare in her eye. "What if my peers turn on us and side with her? Then they know…" Star turned away, feeling guilty. Toffee put a clawed hand on her shoulder, giving Star a weak smile.
"Marco is someone you deeply trust. I get the impression, he's going to utilize the books knowledge well," Toffee walked on ahead. "If not, I can always procure the book when he's not looking. So regardless, things will be fine Lady Star." Star rubbed her temples and tried calming down, folding her arms as she entered the classroom.
Sitting down in the front row, she saw Marco writing on the chalkboard. "Hello, take it you are feeling a little better?" Marco asked, Star looking around the room and seeing no one but her, Toffee and her professor. Star turned to Marco and nodded. "I think today's lesson will be one you enjoy, though…" He sighed, putting both hands on his desk, looking tired all of a sudden. "Not sure how well it will go."
Star was going to ask what he meant by that, but soon her classmates walked through the doorway, each going in their respective seats. Jackie sat next to Higgs, the Markless girls discussing something Star couldn't make out. Lilac entered the room and sat in the back like usual, but Star noticed her walking instead of the usual floating. And lastly was Kelly, sword firmly attached to her belt and a warm smile on her face. She made a salute to Marco, earning an amused grin from him in response. Kelly sat close to Star, the princess ready to focus on the lesson but Marco rubbed his chin, looking around for someone.
In a puff of black smoke, a shadowy figure appeared in the classroom's center. Toffee was ready to stand before Star, but she held her hand up, narrowing her eyes recognizing the figure. Seemingly, so did the rest of her house, as they stayed rooted in their seats. "Sup. Joined you guys and hope to learn some magic," She made a halfhearted bow and sat right next to Star, earning the ire of Toffee's yellow eyes. "Want me to turn you into a gecko?" Toffee clenched his clawed hands, Star seeing faint glimmers of dark magic emanating from them.
"Janna, you promised not to harass them," Marco said sternly, earning an eye roll from his latest student. He simply rubbed his forehead exasperated. "I knew this would be trouble…" Star swore she heard Marco mumble. He quickly composed himself and clapped his hands together. "Now, Janna Ordonia requested to join our class and considering her talents in magic arts, I figured she would be a great addition to our roster." Marco let his hands drop to his sides. "Please, welcome her like anyone else here."
"So, girl…" Lilac asked, her tone clearly amused for some reason. "I know you want to in over hellboy, so hanging with us ain't gonna help." Janna rolled her eyes and shot a beam of white magic at Lilac. She ducked at the least possible second, the blast nearly hitting her horn. "Ooohh, you wanna mess with me?" Janna smirked, waving her hands around as a gust of smoke hovered around Lilac's face. She breathed some of it in, her eyes slowly closing. "My… I would love to kiss you…" Lilac's face slammed against her table, passed out cold and smiling loudly.
Janna wiped her hands, putting them behind her head. Toffee let out a dark laugh, slapping his knee. "My… Aren't you an interesting one?" Star had to fight down a smirk of her own, turning to Marco to pay attention to whatever he was going to say.
"...Thank you, I suppose for that, Janna." Janna saluted Marco, telling him to continue. "Today, we are going to learn about magic." He pointed to the chalkboard, Star noticing various symbols her mind etched into her skull over and over. The Legendary Marks… She thought seriously, intently paying attention to her teacher's comments. "The various marks you do and do not have are important to understand, as they give you strength and weaknesses," Marco stated, pointing to the mark in the center, it being of a butterfly. "Legendary Marks come from ten different bloodlines, all of which apparently came from Mewni's origin."
He started pacing, holding a book in his hands as he talked. "The Butterfly Marks are the most interesting, as they change their appearance over the generations, though they function the same way." He closed the book, eyes never leaving Star. "It's amazing the power they offer, but not much is known about them." Because Mom burned all the records. Star found some hypocrisy at being annoyed regarding this, considering she tried something similar with the spellbook.
"We know about this, get to the interesting stuff," Janna shouted, Star giving her a dark look. She simply popped the gum she was chewing in response. Marco's eye twitched, flipping to some additional pages in the book before putting it down.
"Yes… What Janna is implying, is that you do not need Marks to learn magic," Marco held up his hand, it emits a small flame. "I can cast a small fireball, for example. But examples in this very class come to mind." He pointed to Jackie, the girl blinking from the attention. "Jackie is a skilled healer thanks to her impressive Faith skills…" He then pointed to Janna, the girl's smirk reaching her ears in pride. "And our newest student has skills in both sectors of magical study, a feat I want all of you to achieve by the end of this semester."
"But I prefer my blade," Kelly interpreted, her face looking displeased. Higgs mirrored Kelly, simply folding her arms and glaring at Marco. Star noticed Marco's lips smiling, wondering what he was thinking about. Maybe his past? Star never considered Marco to be so interested in magic during their youth. I thought he hated it, considering… She shook off such thoughts, leaning on her desk with interest.
"I understand that, but what if you lost your blade in battle?" Marco asked, clearly hypothetically of course. "Without your blade, you only got your two hands. And what if they weren't enough? What if you weren't strong enough to brawl your way through?" Star stopped thinking Marco was merely trying to explain his point, frowning harshly at his tense body language. A quick glance around the classroom told her she wasn't the only one noticing. Seemingly sensing this himself, Marco coughed into his hands and got everyone's attention. "Being a mercenary taught me, you need to learn everything to live, not just what you like learning."
"Turd's got a point," Lilac spoke up, apparently woken up after Janna's sleep spell. Everyone's eyes were on her, the Cloud Princess blinking from the attention. "What? Even I, like, know healing magic." She began filing her nails. "Don't want scars on my face."
"Did… Did the fool say something smart?" Toffee asked Star earnestly, earning a nod from her. "Well, guess today has merit after all." He sat back down and rose his hand. Marco nodded at Toffee. "Professor, what kind of magic do you intend on teaching us? I would hazard to guess it would be only Reasoning skills."
"That is correct," Marco answered, turning to the rest of his class. "We will be having another 'field trip' so to speak, so follow me with your books and quills." He started walking out of the room, with his students slowly following him one by one. They casually walked through the academy grounds on the way to the training arena, but Star couldn't help but stare at Marco.
He was largely silent, aside from saying the 'Yes' and 'You'll see' when her peers asked him about the lesson. What surprised her, was how he didn't even attempt to get her attention nor input. I'm the student, so this shouldn't bother me. Yet, it somehow did, flexing her knuckles to channel some inner magic. She caught him giving her a knowing smirk, blinking from surprise. The lesson… Is for me.
Considering the spellbook came from her family tree, only logical Marco would want to share his discovery with his class. Do I trust my peers with this though? Star couldn't answer this, even as she entered the training arena but it looked very different from their last visit here. The dummies were sparing with one another as if they were alive. The faint plants that grew from the ground stood tall like the trees in the Forest of Death. Even the air felt 'lighter' somehow, Star's arms faintly glowing at the magic around her. Looking to Toffee, his arms had faint black outlines itching across his arms.
Marco clapped his hands, getting the attention of the dummies and various other living magical beings in the arena. They bowed to him and he couldn't help but smile at this. "Students, these beings are going to be our sparring partners. Today we are going to start with basic ranged magic attacks, mainly Fire, Blizzard and Thorn." Marco started pacing, hands behind his back. "Then, we are going to work on healing magic and by today's end, you all will be able to cast heal or even physic."
"...Maybe some dark magic too?" Janna asked, her voice somewhat hopeful. Marco rubbed his chin before he gave a casual shrug. He started pacing again, waving his hands around now.
"If dark magic attacks fit your style of magic better than focus on that, but I want you all to learn healing and some form of offensive magic," Marco said firmly, earning collective nods from his students. Star readied her hands, excited to finally cut loose.