Notes:

We get a little scene of possessive Star, and a look at what realistically even a well trained human would have ended up with after the day Marco has had. He's just fighting things so far out of his weight class its not even funny~!

Chapter 17

"Boys! Dinner is ready!" Francine calls out from the kitchen, causing me to blink and frantically check the time on my phone. 6 pm! We really need to get back home, the time just got away from me with the craziness of the past hour. Stopping Star from initially destroying the tv to try to kill the zombies inside, preventing her from chewing on the controller, cleaning up the aftermath after she tried to use magic to help her character in the game… it was tons of fun.

"Hey, we gotta go. I told my folks we'd be back by dinner." Standing up from the beanbag is a painful experience, all my various aches combining with overstretched muscles that had been left to rest too long.

"Aww, do we have to? I think I almost have it down!" Star looks up at me with some of the best puppy dog eyes I've seen in a while from where she lays on her stomach on -my- usual beanbag. Unfortunately for her, our new batch of laser puppies are cuter, and I'm ready to get home.

"Don't bother, Star. Once he gets his mind set on one of his 'schedules' he won't budge." Ferguson rolls his eyes, Alfonzo chuckling along. Of course I don't budge on schedules! If we didn't follow them, everything would get messed up. I don't understand other people sometimes. "It was nice to meet you, Star. See you at school on Monday!"

"Yeah! See you there!" Star bounces up to her feet, still endlessly energetic even after the day we've had. I personally want nothing more than to go home, eat dinner, and get some sleep. It really is nice to see not even a hint of hesitation at the mention of school, though. Just as planned, now that she realizes how fun some people can be there it shouldn't come off as so bad. Surely not like that St. Olga's she seemed so terrified of.

"Talk to you later, you two." I give a little wave to the pair and start leading Star out towards the door. As I'm passing by the kitchen, Francine pokes her head out of the doorway suddenly. Her face is uncomfortably close to mine, our noses almost touching.

"Are you suuuure you don't want to stay for dinner? We made plenty~" I feel my cheeks redden a bit from the sudden surprise of being right in the face of a girl as pretty as my friend's mother. Before I can stutter out anything, however, I feel myself yanked back by my hoodie.

Star squints at the now giggling redhead in front of us suspiciously before answering, "Nope. We'll be fine. C'mon Marco, lets go." I just kind of shrug and follow Star out. Francine has always been unpopular with any girls who swing by Ferguson's house, for whatever reason. Especially the last few female exchange students I brought, they all hated her.

Without any further distractions we manage to make it outside and begin the semi-long walk home. "Are all days on Earth as amazing as this?" Star asks, suddenly. Her blue eyes catch a bit of the orange sky, tinted by the sun getting ready to set.

I honestly have no idea how to tell her that everything amazing that happened today was because of her. We could have been doing anything, anywhere and I still would have been on an adventure thanks to her crazy antics. I decide a little white lie might be best and answer, "Most Saturdays are pretty great, yep! School days are a bit less fun, but Echo Creek is pretty cool huh?"

Star begins nodding rather slowly, her eyes still facing up to the setting sun. The pair of us make good time back, with me leading through the most efficient route to my house and neither of us weighed down by a wagon. The sun has dipped just below the horizon when we walk inside. "Hey kids, come to the kitchen! Food is getting cold!"

Later that night, Star and I are having our showers. I usually take one daily, but Star is apparently used to bathing a bit less frequently. Too bad, she's absolutely covered in stuff from the days adventures and quite frankly still stinks like a dumpster. She decides to shower first this time, and hopefully no further hijinks are likely to happen.

I strip off some of my outer clothes while waiting on her to finish, tossing my hoodie, shoes, and socks off into the corner. After a quick glance to make sure Star is still in the middle of her shower (Giggling with soap bubbles literally overflowing over the stall door) I strip off my t-shirt as well. A quick wipe of the steamy mirror later, and I'm examining myself to see what the damage of the last few days is.

I actually don't really like seeing myself in the mirror. I'm always pointing out flaws, no matter how minor. There's a little mole there, a pimple here, my arms are too thin there, my stomach doesn't have enough definition, I hate the way my hair looks-you get the picture. It's a necessary evil in this case, unfortunately. I begin picking out the various purple and yellow spots across myself where I'd taken big hits, and wince when it's worse than I expected.

My forearms are basically one big purple mess from where I'd had to guard against the demon earlier. My ribs are spotted here and there with oddly shaped marks from where a monster's tail or some other animal feature I wasn't expecting to have to guard against had nicked me. My knuckles are scraped raw from how tough that demon's skin was, and underneath it all I can feel stressed out muscles. Usually when we spar in our Karate class, we have plenty of time to warm up and stretch ourselves out.

But with these last few fights? Its all been emergencies. I had to go from basically at rest to high gear in a very short amount of time, which is very much not good for your body. I wonder how long I'll last for if fights like this happen all the time? I might heal pretty quick on average, but there's a definite limit. I guess I'm a bit too distracted by picking out all the little flaws, because I don't notice the shower turning off or Star stepping out behind me.

"Marco…?" She asks, sounding concerned. For my part I snatch up the towel I'd had nearby and cover my chest. I may or may not have a complex about my unusually small nipples, don't judge me, "You're hurt." It isn't a question this time, more of a certainty.

I simply shrug and nod, "Yeah, the last few days have been pretty crazy. Fighting monsters, exploring the city with you, flying in that wagon, it'll wear a guy out. But I'd happily accept ten times this much pain for how much fun I've been having with you!" I can't help the bloodthirsty smile that settles on my lips at the feeling of adventure that has settled in me since I met Star. I might be addicted to the adrenaline rush of danger…

"You know, with how well you've been keeping up I kind of forgot you were human." Star admits, still looking a bit concerned. She walks up to the counter clad only in her pair of towels and reaches out to gently lay a finger on one of the bruises still visible past my quick cover up. "People in Mewni have lived around danger for generations. Even the average citizen is tough enough to survive pretty much anything, much less someone with Johansen blood like me. Some of the people here are so soft, you know? My eight year old cousin could snap Alfonzo like a twig."

She shakes her head, then shrugs and gives me an encouraging smile, "But you! You're so amazing at fighting, I never even thought about it. I think we might need to slow down some of our adventures just a bit if you're gonna be my main partner in crime, Earth Guide."

I can't help but blink at her. My towel drops as I grab her bare shoulders, giving her a dead serious glare, "Don't you dare let me hold you back. I can take anything you can. And I'm having the most fun of my entire life. I'll adapt! Can't be that tough." I realize two things at once after that, that my bare chest (Oh god she saw my tiny nipples) is on show, and that I'm grabbing Star while she's wearing basically nothing.

We separate from each other quickly, a blush on both our cheeks. "I... okay, Marco. Don't die on me!" Star orders, half jokingly and half dead serious.

I answer in pretty much the same way, "Yes Ma'am, Magic guide." and re-wrap my chest towel before heading into the shower and doing my best to let the hot water seep away some of my aches and pains. Star didn't come into my room to try to keep me awake that night, bless her heart-I really needed the sleep.