In the Line of Squire - Chapter I: Friendly Squire

In the Line of Squire
Chapter I: Friendly Squire

The Butterfly Castle armory laid dead silent, aside from the occasional soft sound of the cool autumn breeze, and the scraping of a dull steel blade across a whetstone.

After nearly an hour of trying, Marco had decided to give up on sleep, despite how late it had gotten. He knew he shouldn't have been so worried about Star going on an adventure without him. It wasn't like she hadn't prepared, or that she had left without telling anyone. As impulsive as Star could be sometimes, she was capable of taking care of herself. Despite that, Marco did worry about her, and he regretted that she hadn't allowed him to be at her side. He'd spent most of the day trying to distract himself by whatever means he could find.

Star was away from the castle working on a personal project, or something along those lines. Marco wasn't sure he had fully understood when she explained. Since Star was gone, Marco had decided to take the opportunity do some equipment maintenance. And so he found himself in the armory alone, long after most of the castle had turned in for the night, trying to get a simple shortsword back into shape.

After the recent Squire Blowout, Marco decided he needed to expand his arsenal in order to keep up with Star. After putting in a request with the quartermaster, Marco had been allowed to take a few of the poorer condition weapons, and had been given free access to the facilities and tools of the armory. Marco thought that Star could've used her pull to get him some higher quality equipment, but he chose not to involve her in this endeavor. If Star believed that there were things she needed to do on her own, he decided it might be time for him to do the same.

Marco carefully ran the sword across the back of his arm to check its sharpness, annoyed by his own lack of progress when blade failed to cut the hair. After thoroughly cleaning the grime away, he had been going at the whetstone with the sword for a good minute or so, but the blade didn't seem to be getting its edge back. It was better than it had been, but he could hardly call it battle ready. Marco dropped the blade on the workbench, holding his head in his hands and groaning in frustration.

He stared at the sword thoughtfully, trying to figure out where he had gone wrong. As he considered his next move, Marco heard the armory door opening, accompanied by a clanking of metal. All this was followed by footsteps and a vaguely familiar voice. "Oh... hey."

Marco turned toward the sound of the voice, finding Higgs carrying a bag full of equipment and a suit of armor. The armor itself was obviously not fitted for Higgs, being far too large for her body. Marco assumed it belonged to her knight, Sir Stabby.

"Hey." Marco hadn't seen Higgs since the Squire Blowout sale a few days before. Though Marco had managed to make amends with Star after their fight, he and Higgs hadn't exactly parted on good terms. Based on her curt tone, Marco didn't think anything had changed since then.

Higgs said nothing further to Marco, setting up her equipment at another workbench near the middle of the room. Not even bothering to look up from his stalled work, Marco could hear sound of Higgs breaking down the suit of armor. He could sense her eyes on him, though he wasn't sure why. He decided to just ignore it and return to his project, but Higgs ended up breaking the silence. "You're not with the Princess?"

Marco glanced up at Higgs, wondering if he was about to get a lecture. As if he didn't already feel guilty about Star adventuring without him. "She said she was going out to do some... I think she called it independent field research? I dunno, something about monsters."

Higgs' eyes went wide with surprise. She leaned across her workbench toward Marco, suddenly raising her voice. "And you just let her go without you!?"

"She had somebody with her, but she said she needed to travel light on this one." Marco shrugged, having already accepted his fate. Marco knew that Higgs didn't know Star the way he did. He didn't like that he had been asked to stay behind, but Marco trusted Star's judgment. "Besides, have you met anybody who could stop her from doing something she really wants to do?"

Higgs narrowed her eyes at Marco, but seemed to concede the point. She shook her head in vague disapproval and returned to the suit of armor she had brought, spreading the pieces out on the bench.

As for Marco, he didn't feel he had anything more to say to Higgs. He simply returned to his own work, running the edge of the sword across his whetstone once again.

"You're holding it wrong." Without so much as looking, Higgs could tell Marco's technique was off.

"What?" Marco glanced up at Higgs, who had just finished laying out the armor and moved on to her tools, not even looking back at him.

"The blade. You're gonna ruin that thing." Higgs stood up from her bench, crossing her arms and staring down Marco with disdain. "Who taught you how to be a squire anyway?"

The question stung Marco more than he would've expected. He thought he'd gotten over people questioning his fitness as Star's squire, but Higgs had struck a nerve. "NOBODY! I'm flying blind here!" Marco had learned a few things about weaponry in Hekapoo's dimension, but there were large gaps in his memory of the events there. And as much as he had tried to research the duties of a squire in his own, he still felt like he was completely unqualified. "I don't know anything about being a squire, especially for a Princess."

Higgs gave Marco a look that was a mixture of judgment and confusion, like she was trying to decide whether to be angry at him. "Then why did you decide to be one?"

The question sounded genuine, but given his recent encounter with Higgs, Marco couldn't believe it actually was. "Did you just come here to pick a fight?" Marco set the blade down, rising from his seat. He didn't particularly want to start anything with Higgs, but he'd had just about enough of being abused over his lack of traditional squire qualifications. "If I wanted somebody to be a jerk to me for no reason, believe me, I've got better options."

Higgs pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration, groaning quietly. "Do you want to fix that sword or not?

Marco briefly considered whether it might be a trap of some kind. He figured Higgs knew what she was talking about, but that didn't mean it wasn't the same kind of trick she had pulled on him at the Squire Blowout. Still, Marco was going nowhere fast on his own. "Fine."

Higgs stepped away from her own workbench, crossing the room to join Marco. She roughly pushed him out of the way, examining his setup and equipment. "At least it's the right stone." Higgs took the sword in hand, setting it against the whetstone. "Okay, now... watch what I do. 30 degree angle. Smooth, continuous strokes."

Marco watched as Higgs sharpened the blade with a practiced hand, every motion fluid and seemingly automatic. "Listen. I... didn't know about you and the princess."

Marco laughed a little nervously, not liking where the conversation was headed. "Wh- what do you mean? What about us?"

Noticing the hitch in Marco's response, Higgs smiled to herself, letting the question hang in the air briefly. "About what you did during the invasion. The fight against Toffee."

Marco quietly let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. "Oh... that."

Higgs set down the sword and backed away from Marco's work bench, motioning for him to take her place. Marco returned to his position, taking the blade in hand, running it across the stone as Higgs had shown him.

"Good. Do that for about half a minute, then flip it." Higgs watched carefully to make sure Marco was on the right track, then resumed her story.

"When Ludo's army came, Sir Stabby and I were on a quest way out in the Jaggy Mountains. We didn't get the news until it was already over. By the time we got back, there were rumors flying everywhere. Everybody pretty much said the same thing about what happened on Song Day, but there were so many different stories about the battle with Ludo and Toffee." Higgs was no longer watching Marco's work closely, now lost in her own thoughts. "I know the Princess is strong, but you? I didn't think some dweeb from... eerth or whatever it's called... could do more than the entire Mewni army."

"HAH!" Even though Higgs had a valid point, at least in theory, Marco couldn't help but be a little offended at how she had put it. "Your soldiers got beaten by a bunch of rats. RATS!" Marco turned his attention toward Higgs as he shouted, and away from his work. As he slid the stone across the sword, his finger slipped and dragged across the edge of the blade before he could jerk it away. "OW!" Marco immediately spotted blood flowing from his hand, and squeezed his finger to slow the loss.

"Don't take your eyes off the blade, idiot! Ugh... hold on." Higgs rushed over to her cleaning kit, digging in it until she found what she was looking for. While Marco waited, he reached into his own supplies, taking out a small piece of thin cleaning cloth, wrapping it into a makeshift bandage to stop the bleeding. Higgs quickly returned to Marco with a small pair of chainmail gloves. "Put these on. They'll protect you while you're working."

He slid on the gloves with some difficulty, finding them at least a size too small for his hands. "They're a little tight..." It wasn't quite enough to cut off his circulation, but they were definitely uncomfortable.

"Yeah. That's because they're for kids. I haven't used those in years. Just kept them around in case of... I dunno." Marco waited for an explanation from Higgs, who suddenly seemed hesitant to offer one. "I guess I hoped that maybe I'd be training a squire of my own someday, but isn't exactly what I had in mind. Now... start again." Higgs watched as Marco returned to sharpening the blade, now protected by the gloves. "How much do you know about Mewman history?"

Marco was a bit surprised by the question, but as Higgs had instructed, he kept his eye on the sword. "Uhh... I know a little bit about the holidays, I guess. Star told me all about Mewnipendence Day."

"Well if you're gonna be a squire here, you better start learning. But the part I'm thinking of probably isn't something you'd know, anyway. People don't like to talk about it, and the official histories all gloss over it." Higgs paused briefly to consider her next words. "I guess sometimes it's easier for people to believe what they want, rather than the truth."

Marco thought the blade looked about done, and he held it up to get Higgs' blessing. "How's this?"

Higgs looked it over, nodding slowly. "Good enough. Now flip the stone over and sharpen it again with the fine side."

As Marco did what he was told, Higgs continued. "The last war happened way before I was born, but... we took massive losses against the monsters. That's why Queen Moon had to fight The Lizard herself. When she had almost bluffed her way into a peace treaty with the monster king, Toffee showed up and called her on it." Marco detected a tinge of something like regret in Higgs' tone. "So she went out alone. There was nobody else left to stand with her."

Marco's hands stilled, the blade resting against the stone, unsure how to react to what Higgs had said. "Star... never told me about any of that. I'm sorry."

"Don't be. Our soldiers died on their feet, fighting for their kingdom. I'd be proud to go out like that." Marco believed her, the confidence clear in her voice. "Still, it left Mewni in a bad position. There were only a few survivors, like Sir Scarsguard. I know he might be old and deaf now, but I heard back in the day he could kill a dragon with his bare hands." Higgs was beaming with pride as she spoke, and Marco could see the obvious admiration she held for Sir Scargsuard.

"Anyway, what we had left wasn't enough for an army. Most of the younger veterans were dead, and there weren't enough old hands around to get the fresh meat into shape. We had to start over almost from scratch, and there aren't a lot of Mewmans cut out to be soldiers in the first place. We're seriously under strength even today, and it'll probably be another generation or two before we're back up to standards."

"Why are you telling me this?" As informative as it might have been, Marco wasn't sure what it had to do with him.

"Because if you're really gonna be a squire, you need to know everything there is to know about Mewni and our history. Because you need to understand exactly how we ended up losing to an army of rats. And because..."  Higgs hesitated before changing the subject. "Maybe you haven't been polishing armor for as long as I have, but you've been doing what squire and knights are supposed to do. When Mewni needed you most, you stepped up to protect her."

Before he could realize that Higgs had come dangerously close to complimenting him, Marco's curiosity was piqued by her last words. "Wait, Mewni is a girl?"

"Well yeah. Ships and countries are always 'her'. Not sure why, just tradition I guess. Now stop interrupting." Higgs glared sharply at Marco, taking a moment to collect her thoughts.

"What I'm trying to say is... I didn't know about what you really did during the invasion. Until the Princess told me. She tracked me down after the squire sale and told me everything. Told me I shouldn't have treated you the way I did, and that you really did help save Mewni." Higgs sighed deeply, and nearly choked on her next words. "I guess maybe I had the wrong idea about you, and... I'm sorry."

Marco stilled the blade, looking up at Higgs with genuine surprise. "Oh. Uh... thanks, Higgs."

"Well, don't let it go to your head." Higgs rolled her eyes at Marco. "You're still just a squire, and a pretty bad one. But at least the Princess didn't give you the job just because you're her boyfriend."

Marco snapped back in protest. "I'm not-"

"I know." Higgs cut Marco off before he could defend himself any further. "The Princess told me about that too. I didn't know she was with Prince Tom, especially after what I heard about Song Day. I thought they broke up a while back."

"They did break up, before I met her. But... I dunno. I guess Star managed to patch things up with him since then." Even though he had slowly become friends with Tom, Marco still found he had extremely mixed feelings about him dating Star. He was surprised at how much it bothered him, and he didn't entirely understand why it did.

Higgs shot Marco a curious sideways glance."... you keep calling the her by her first name."

"Well... yeah. She's my best friend." Marco looked at Higgs with confusion, having no idea what she was getting at. "What else would I call her?"

"She's royalty! And in case you forgot, you're a squire! Show some respect!" Higgs shook her head in exasperation. She couldn't believe a mere squire would act so familiar with the Princess. "How about Princess? Princess Star? Your Highness? M'lady?"

"Huh. I guess I could give that last one a shot..." Marco gave his sword a few final runs across the stone. He gave the blade a quick check, once again running it across the back of his arm, this time seeing the hair lift away. "What do you think?"

Higgs took the blade in hand, carefully inspecting the edge and judging that it was sharp enough. "Yeah, it's done. So, where's the armor?"

"I'm actually not sure. Star has a suit of armor, but I've only seen her use it a couple times. I don't even know where she keeps it." Marco shrugged, not having been especially motivated to go find it. It wouldn't fit him, and he wasn't sure Star even remembered that she had it.

"Well if you wanna be a knight, you better learn how to take care of armor." Higgs returned to her own workbench, gently rapping her knuckles on the suit of armor she had brought, making a dull metallic thud. "So let's get to work on Sir Stabby's suit."

Marco shot Higgs a teasing grin as he removed his protective gloves, content that he was done with them for the time being. "Didn't you say you could polish armor in your sleep?"

"I could if you weren't here keeping me awake, nerd. Why do you think I come here so late?" Higgs rolled her eyes, tossing Marco a cleaning cloth. "But since you're here distracting me, you're gonna help. Consider it squire training."

Marco wasn't exactly sure if he still wanted to be an official knight, but he reluctantly accepted that Higgs had a point. Better to have it and not need it, he thought.

After Higgs gave him basic instructions on what to do, they went to work quietly. Marco wasn't sure what more to say. A tension built in the silence, until Higgs eventually shattered it.

"You know why I became a squire?" Marco said nothing, continuing his work, sensing that Higgs would tell him regardless. "I used to be a farmer, like a lot of Mewmans. Back then, I hardly knew anything about the old war. It was just something my dad told stories about sometimes. Not that he fought in it. He was always a farmer, even in those days."

Marco rolled his eyes, already having a pretty good guess what came next. "Let me guess... corn?"

"Potatoes, jerk." Higgs glared at Marco, looking rather insulted.

"Oh." Marco actually felt a bit guilty over the assumption, even if he'd never seen a farm on Mewni that didn't grow corn of some description. "Sorry."

"Whatever. I never really liked farming anyway. Most of the big, communal farms close to the center of the kingdom are behind a magic shield. I'm sure you've seen it." Higgs sighed to herself, shaking her head. "But my parents, they wanted to be independent. Not that they don't respect the crown, they just wanted to do things for themselves. So my family took the risk of farming outside the shield. Honestly, as close we were to the Forest of Certain Death, I'm surprised nothing happened sooner. A few years ago, our luck ran out."

Higgs put down her cleaning cloth, staring down at the table with a faraway look as she lost herself in a dark memory. "There were about six of them. Just bandits, clubs and knives, nothing special. But my dad knew he couldn't fight them all off. He was ready to make a stand so we could get away, but..."

Marco was no longer paying any attention to polishing the armor, now transfixed with Higgs as she told her story. Regardless of his personal opinion about Higgs, he hoped the story wasn't going where it seemed to be going.

"Well, maybe our luck wasn't quite used up after all.” Higgs’ mouth twisted into a small smile. “Sir Stabby passed by on the way to patrol the border of the forest. He and his group of knights saw some suspicious people on the road, and decided to follow them. When Sir Stabby saw them attack the farm, his squad stepped in and chased them off. Probably would've done a lot worse to them if they hadn't run."

Higgs picked her cleaning cloth back up, returning to her work on the armor, and Marco took that as his cue to do the same. "After that happened... it was like I was seeing the world clearly for the first time. I knew what I really wanted to do. Mewni needs protectors. It needs people to stand up for everyone who can't stand up for themselves. And the Queen can't be everywhere at once."

"When we were thanking the knights afterward, I found out Sir Stabby was the only one of them who didn't have a squire. I asked him if I could be one, and you know what he said?" Higgs let the question hang in the air.

At first Marco had assumed it was rhetorical, but Higgs actually seemed to be waiting for a response. "He... he said yes?"

"Heck no! He laughed in my face.” Higgs laughed darkly to herself. “Told me I'd never be able to make it as a knight. That I was just some dirt farmer who didn't have the right blood, the right upbringing..."

Marco found himself genuinely surprised at the response. “So... what did you do?"

"I followed them, then snuck into their wagon and hid in their supplies while they were asleep.” Higgs sounded rather proud of her scheme. “Sir Stabby found me the next morning. He said he didn't have time to take me back home, so he told me if I survived going patrol with them, I could be his squire."

"Harsh." Sir Stabby hadn't struck Marco as a particularly nice individual, but he was surprised by the sheer callousness.

"Yeah. He's not an easy boss. But he does care about people." Higgs' tone had suddenly become much warmer, and as hard as it was for Marco to believe her words, she seemed to genuinely believe them herself. "He never really explained why he did what he did that day, but I think... he wanted me to know what I was getting into."

Marco was genuinely invested now, wanted to hear the rest of the story. "So what happened?"

"Duh. I'm still here, aren't I?" Higgs looked at Marco like he was an idiot, rolling her eyes. "The rest isn't important right now. The point is, I survived."

Marco was curious to find out what happened next, but he didn't think he'd be getting any further explanation tonight. "What did your parents say?"

"Pretty much what you'd expect." Higgs shrugged. "They were mad at me for sneaking off, but even more proud that I got accepted as a squire. The Mewni army takes just about anybody who knows which end of a spear to use, but the knights? That's hard to even get a foot in the door."

Higgs put her cloth down and checked her work, before moving on to another piece of Sir Stabby's armor. After a brief silence, she looked back up at Marco. "You still didn't answer my question. Why did you become a squire?"

Marco hadn't actually thought very deeply about the reason for his decision. It had just seemed like the natural thing to do. "Well, after I helped Star kill Toffee, River told me I could be a knight..."

Higgs burst out in mocking laughter. "Oh wow, the King's still using that one? And you believed it? What kind of backwater, one horse kingdom are you from, anyway?"

"Earth isn't a- no, forget it. Not getting into that one." Marco shook his head, deciding to get back to the matter at hand. He continued to mechanically polish Sir Stabby's armor, now almost on autopilot. "After I went back home... I don't know. It was like my friends and family were strangers. Even my girlfriend. It just felt like I didn't belong there anymore."

"But you felt like you belonged here?" Higgs' question carried a strange tone of uncertainty and disbelief.

"Sorta. Maybe it's more like I never really belonged on earth in the first place. But I had the time of my life here, being part of the Resistance, fighting evil monsters, helping save the kingdom..." As Marco was forced to contemplate the question, he found that he was even more sure of his decision, but somehow couldn't quite convince himself of the reason for it.

"A kingdom that isn't even yours." Higgs paused to let the statement sink in before her next question. "So why risk your life for her?"

Marco reluctantly realized that Higgs had a point, and he found himself struggling to come up with an explanation that he could believe. "Well... it's like you said. She needs me, right? Or maybe... I don't know. Maybe you’re right. Maybe she was never mine. Maybe I just wanted her to need me."

Higgs tilted her head, giving Marco a curious yet knowing look. "Are we still talking about Mewni?"

The question instantly snapped Marco out of his reverie. "I... don't know what you mean."

"Okay." Higgs gave Marco a barely perceptible smile, with something behind it that he couldn't quite discern. "Doesn't matter. You answered my question." Higgs paid him no further mind, and Marco scratched his head in confusion as she put the finishing touches on the armor, then carefully inspected each piece. "Huh. Armor came out pretty good, actually. I don't think even Sir Stabby could complain about this." Higgs' mouth turned up into a small but now completely genuine smile, accompanied by a nod of approval.

Marco tried to detect any sarcasm in Higgs' praise, but to his surprise, there was none to be found. Looking over his work, he had to agree with her assessment. "Yeah, I guess it does look good." After an apology, and now a real compliment, Marco was starting to wonder if Higgs wasn't as ill-tempered as she acted.

Now that it was fully polished, Higgs rebundled Sir Stabby's armor for easy transportation. Before moving onto her other work, she shot Marco a stern look. "Marco... take care of Princess Star, okay? You're her squire, so if anything ever happens to her, I'm holding you personally responsible."

"Oh, you don't have to worry. I'd already do that myself." Marco laughed darkly, knowing just how true his statement was. Considering that Star was out in potentially dangerous territory alone, he would never forgive himself if something happened to her, even if she'd insisted that he stay behind.

"Hey, Higgs.” Just as Marco was trying to decide what to do next, a thought struck him. “Will you be here tomorrow night?"

"Hm. I mean, I wasn't planning to be, but... you seem like you're pretty hopeless on your own." Higgs gave Marco a wicked grin, seemingly enjoying hearing him ask for her help. "9 sharp. Pun intended. You better not be late, nerd."

"Heh. Okay. I'll be here." Marco decided to let the insult slide. If she was willing to show up just for him, he figured they must have made SOME progress.

"So... we got into some kinda deep stuff tonight, but this doesn't make us best friends or anything." The response came as though Higgs had read Marco's mind.

"I know." Marco hadn't exactly expected to be friends with Higgs at all, but for the moment, he felt he could live with a truce. "But at least we have a... tolerationship?"

Higgs chuckled, slapping Marco on the back."I have a couple more things to do here. You go get some sleep... Squire Marco."

Marco decided that was probably a good idea. To his surprise, his conversation with Higgs had ended up bringing him some small peace of mind. As he thought about it with a clearer head, he realized that staying up all night wouldn't bring Star back home any faster, and he wanted to be rested and ready for her return. He yawned and rubbed his tried eyes, gathering his equipment and preparing to head to his room. Tomorrow would be a new day.

As he was just about to shut the armory door behind him, he heard Higgs' voice coming from inside one last time. "Marco? You were right the first time."

Marco stopped in his tracks, unsure what Higgs was referring to. "About what?"

"About what you said before." Higgs responded like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"She needs you."