A/N Marcia Overstrand is my favorite character of all time, this fanfiction was a result of being disappointed with how she was portrayed in Pathfinder. (Seriously, she fought to get and keep her job as ExtraOrdinary Wizard for so long, and then she up and retired after twenty years to marry an unMagykal traveling merchant? Ugh!) This story takes place 11 years after Fyre, and Pathfinder never happened. It's a Marcia/Septimus friendship story, so no romance- although characters in later chapters will have a hard time believing that!

Disclaimer: I don't own Septimus Heap or anyone in his wonderful world.

Welcome, Ex-ExtraOrdinary Apprentice.

The familiar lettering danced across the floor as a young stranger entered Wizard Tower for the first time in three years. The rain was coming down in sheets, and he didn't bother to push back his hood as he approached the moving staircase. A few Ordinary Wizards glanced at him curiously, wondering who this mysterious figure was, and how he knew the password to the front doors. He was glad none of them approached or recognized him. He didn't want his parents to hear that in his first visit home in three years, he had gone first to see Marcia instead of them. It wasn't that he didn't miss Silas and Sarah dearly- their letters and occasional gifts had both comforted and sharpened his homesickness for his family. But if he were being honest, he missed Marcia more. Besides, it had been a long day and he didn't feel like going through a big commotion at the Palace.

The staircase moved quickly, and Septimus Heap took a deep breath as he drew near to the end of his journey. His fists were clenched around the long knife he wore at his side- a gift from King Hull, ruler of the powerful mainland country where he had lived for the last seven years. It complimented his traveling attire, which he'd chosen for his return journey with care- a fine shirt of dark green, mirroring the color he once wore as ExtraOrdinary apprentice, dark leggings, and a long silk cloak flung over his broad shoulders. He had done thorough One-Minute-Clean on his clothes and boots before entering Wizard Tower to ensure the dust from his journeys would not dirty Marcia's impeccably clean rooms. When he reached the top floor, he finally pushed back the hood from his face and ran a hand through his messy straw-colored Heap hair. The hair was a dead giveaway of his identity, and he was glad to have had a reason to conceal it as he marched through the city.

The large purple door to Marcia's rooms recognized him and opened as he approached. Septimus felt a small glow of satisfaction- he was home. Marcia sitting on her couch in the living room, one hand clutching an open book and the other upraised, obviously in the middle of conducting with a spell. Her eyebrows were raised in surprise and irritation at the unexpected interruption. The door opened automatically to no one but herself and an extremely short list of people. For a moment she and Septimus stared at one another.

She looks so young… was the only confused thought Septimus managed before the woman yelled,

"Septimus! Septimus, Septimus!"

And then she was running toward him and he was wrapping his arms around her and swinging her in the circle, heedless to the furniture he was knocking into or the Chinese rug he was scuffing with his travel-worn boots (he was now immensely grateful he had remembered to clean them). After a moment of laughing and swinging, Septimus set Marcia on her feet, but neither of them let go. She was small, no, he was big. He had been a gangly eighteen-year-old when he had finished his apprenticeship and gone to university, and he had remembered teasing Marcia about how he was taller than her. But that last quest had put some bulk onto his spindly figure. He wondered briefly if Marcia noticed as she wrapped her arms tightly around his middle. Her dark hair billowed into his face, and he buried his head into the familiar curls, unsure of what to feel. He was twenty-five now, no longer a young apprentice or student. And he felt tall. How was he so much taller? He was sure he hadn't had a growth spurt since he was sixteen. Then he realized why and laughed,

"You sure are shorter without those pythons, Marcia."

The ExtraOrdinary Wizard pulled slightly away, trying to look offended, but failing to hide the huge smile on her face.

"Septimus Heap, you take those god-awful boots off your feet before you start calling me… short," she faltered as she stared at him. "And what's this scruff on your face?" she demanded, staring at the few inches of beard he'd been growing.

Septimus smiled sheepishly and shrugged. "I've had it for a while."

Marcia shook her head and Septimus jumped on her wordlessness to ask some questions of his own.

"And you- apparently you've paid a visit to Marcellus," he prodded, recognizing the effects of the alchemist's Tincture. Unless Marcia had found the Age-Reversal Spell that some of the more vain ExtraOrdinaries had wasted their time seeking. But she didn't radiate the Magyk of being under a spell- it was clearly alchemy that had changed her to look a few years younger than when Septimus had first met her- back when he had been Boy 412.

"Not on purpose, that fool," Marcia snapped, pulling away from Septimus' arms and gesturing him toward the couch. "I went to his home once to discuss a charm, and the idiot- who is famous for mixing precise substances, mind you- managed to slips an age-potion into my cup of tea instead of his. He seemed genuinely apologetic, but I still can't imagine how it happened by accident. I ordered him to research methods of its reversal, but I don't know if he's seriously making an effort. He seems to think we have all the time in the world."

"So you're immortal now, too?" Septimus said, raising an eyebrow as he settled onto the couch. She did look great. He couldn't imagine any woman who wasn't jealous of her situation. But for all the fuss she made about her shoes and outfit, he knew she wasn't vain enough to truly desire the affects of the Tincture. Marcia was shaking her head in exasperation and didn't answer; instead, she began shouting orders to the kitchen to bring a late-night snack for her guest.

Septimus Removed his boots and Sent his damp cloak to the rack near the fire. It had been a long journey, and he'd barely stopped since his early start at sunrise. When Marcia poked her head out from the kitchen and asked if he had eaten dinner, he admitted that he hadn't. He hadn't eaten much of anything since the bread and cheese he'd bought at Port that morning. Marcia tsked and soon an enormous platter of cheese, meat, roasted vegetables, and bread Appeared on the low table before him. Marcia swept in from the kitchen and sat next to him on the couch, setting down mugs, and to his surprise, a bag of FizzFroot.

"I didn't know you kept a supply of these," Septimus grinned, remembering her endless lectures about the evils of the sugary drink. He chose a lemon flavor and dropped it into his cup of boiling water.

Marcia sniffed and said, "I don't keep them around for me."

Septimus loaded a plate with food and began to eat. He could feel Marcia's eyes on him as he attacked his food, but he was too hungry to stop. He swallowed and mumbled an apology, but Marcia picked up her cup of tea and said, rolling her eyes,

"Just eat."

Septimus paused long enough to ask her about the state of the Queendom and for the rest of his meal, they caught up on the last three years. Jenna, who had married Beetle three years ago, now had a little boy named Oliver. Nicko and Snorri already had a gaggle of young ones, and the family often off taking long boating trips. Simon and Lucy had twin boys, and Marcellus was godfather. Merrin Meridith was even married recently to Syrah Syrra. Septimus considered this with surprise, remembering the sullen and bad-tempered ex-Apprentice of DomDaniel, and the serene ex-Apprentice of Julius Pike. He wondered what on earth they had in common, then shrugged. They certainly would be able to bond over their horrible experiences with Darke Possession, if nothing else. Septimus waited impatiently for Marcia to get to her own life, but to his annoyance she did not and he was forced to hint,

"And what ever happened with Milo Banda?"

Marcia's cheeks colored slightly and she said,

"The hopeless wanderer finally settled down, wonder of wonders. He married some royalty he met while traveling. Jenna was furious… she wouldn't let him return when she heard he had started another family But the Queen already has Silas and Sarah, and her own family with Beetle. She can't blame him for wanting want he could never have with her."

Septimus raised his eyebrows and set down his mug, feeling a little more cheerful. Despite Marcia's nonchalance, he knew she'd loved Milo at one point, maybe for much longer than anyone realized. And he couldn't help but feel relieved that it hadn't worked out between the two. He'd never exactly trusted the handsome traveling merchant, and certainly was never liked the idea of him and Marcia becoming closer than friends.

"And Marcellus?" he questioned, remembering the way his two mentors had finally become good friends and colleagues over the years. Marcia turned and gave him a funny look.

"What are you getting at, Septimus?" she said in an irritated voice.

Septimus shrugged and said, "You both ARE immortal now."

Marcia sighed in annoyance. "He is also impossible," she snapped. "We are completely incapable of feeling anything for each other beyond professional camaraderie- and even that is often strained by his stubborn inability to acknowledge the necessity of Magykal surveillance over his numerous little experiments."

Septimus laughed. "No, I don't suppose he feels the need to be accountable to anyone, much less a disagreeable and short-tempered ExtraOrdinary Wizard."

Marcia huffed, then said, "And while we're asking pointed questions- surely you've found someone who has kept you away from all these years."

"Yes, that bloody King Hull who kept sending me off on rescue attempts and so-called adventures that all his other knights failed at," Septimus said ruefully. "I would have returned sooner, but it took me two years to escape from the last quest."

Marcia exclaimed her disbelief, and Septimus spent the next hour explaining the complex quest that he had been sent on, which involved kingdoms under the sea, one-eyed giants in caves, and an enormous whirlpool that had sucked him into another world and time. Marcia asked dozens of questions and it was well past midnight when they started winding down. They rose together after Marcia Sent their dishes to clean themselves up in the kitchen, then she said he was more than welcome to stay in his old rooms.

"You still haven't taken another apprentice?" Septimus asked in surprise, although he was secretly pleased.

"I lived without an apprentice for ten years, and you're a tough act to follow, Septimus," Marcia smiled, reaching up to ruffle his hair. Septimus grinned tiredly, feeling suddenly like he was ten years old again and just getting used to the idea of being released from the Young Army and living with a magnificent woman with keen Magykal powers.

"Go to bed, sleepy," Marcia said, interrupting his muddled flashbacks with a nudge toward his rooms. "Goodness, I'm sure you'll have a long day tomorrow."

A/N Thanks for reading! Please review and let me know what you think! -Bluejay