Work Text:
“You don't have to learn if you don't want to." Joan turned towards her, blinking slowly as she did. Her curly hair was getting more ruffled with the breeze yet still staying out of the way on account of how short it still was and Max envied her. Her own long hair had to be constantly tied back to not get in the way of maneuvers.
Joan turned to look back at where Steve was running through a few drills with Mike. Technically, Max should be over there too, but considering the Marshall had asked her to take Joan down to the field with her, she felt obligated to stick by her. "But Hobbe said..."
Max wrinkled her nose at that. The only other person who called the Marshall by any part of his name was Will's mom and that was weird enough. "Yeah, well, the Marshall isn't in charge of you," she said defiantly, adding her hands to her hips and puffing out her chest for good measure. Joan raised an eyebrow (she really did spend too much time around Mike for Max's comfort), but didn't say anything. She turned to look back out across the field, quiet as she watched the boys be interrupted by Robin. "You really don't have to. Dustin doesn't like it either although I think that is more laziness. Will and his brother avoid it too. I would recommend learning a bit for self-defense but not everyone is a fighter and that..."
"I am a fighter," Max blinked at that. The way Joan was slumped over, face downturned. Like it was a state she had resigned herself to.
"But do you want to be?" Max asked. Joan turned to look at her. Her eyes were far too large to be looking at Max like that and she shifted nervously under them. She tried just a little push, anything to get Joan's eyes away from staring at her like that, "You don't have to forget how you used to be, how to fight. But you don't have to actively fight here. Not unless you actually want to."
“What…” she could hear the way Joan’s voice caught in her throat. “What if there is an attack?”
Max allowed her grin to turn wicked, “Trust me, there are plenty of fighters here to help out.” She turned to point towards where Mike was laying out on the ground, Steve hovering over him, “Mike and I both are training. We both will be knights, we want to fight and want to protect. Lucas also knows quite a bit and he is…” Max blinked away the unbidden images that popped up of Lucas’s most recent growth spurt, spurred on by him regularly working with his parents in their carpentry shop. She shook her head and continued, “And Steve. He is part of the guard. A whole group of people who are dedicated just to protecting Mapleswood and the rest of Whilthor Marsh. You can help them or you can do something else to help everybody.” Max sighed, careful as she began quoting what Dame Flo liked to remind her, usually right before or after Max had gotten into some form of trouble again, “You don’t have to do something because you were told to or because everyone else is. Maybe try doing what feels right.”
Joan hummed, thoughts clearly swirling in her brain. She didn’t answer right off, just turning to watch as Steve helped Mike to his feet and they began again.
“You don’t have to take it.”
Will looked up at Lucas who looked far too sheepish and then back down at the carved magpie in his hand. “My dad said I’m getting better at the big stuff but my detail work still is horrible,” Lucas explained. “He said if I practiced carving more it would help. It still isn’t great…” Will noted how the magpie’s beak was far too short and legs were obviously crooked and two different lengths and could agree, “...but I thought it would be more motivating to make something for all of you guys. It was! And I picked out the best six to give all of us so we could each have one. So I thought…”
“I love it, Lucas,” Will insisted. He clutched the small magpie in his hand as he leaned forward to hug his friend. Lucas immediately wrapped his arms back around Will and Will grinned as he basked in the warmth of his friend. After a moment, Will pulled back to examine the magpie closer. “Tell me more about how you made it,” he ventured, the spark in his eye matching Lucas’s as his friend started sharing some stories while making the set of magpies.
“Your choice: dare of either…”
Max wasn’t fully listening at this point. It was a beautiful summer day, just on the right side of pleasantly warm. She wasn’t sure where Robin or Steve had disappeared off to, but the school had been let out for the day as well so she was just basking in the warm sun rays out in the training field while Dustin hemed and hawed over the next dare he would try to come up with. Mike and Will weren’t that far away, whispering to each other as Will scribbled something on a piece of parchment. She was missing the other two members of their troupe, but not so much that she couldn’t enjoy this perfect day.
“Either kissing Mike or kissing Sir Hops-a-Lot.”
Scratch all that. This was the worst day ever and she would be needing to strangle Dustin before the day was up. She was sure that Lucas and Will would at least help her once she explained why.
Dustin’s grin was way too smug. He clearly thought he had her, “I mean, if it is too intimidating of a choice, I understand. Sir Hops-a-Lot is a very handsome frog and not just anyone…”
Yeah, he had her. “Come here, you little,” Max snarled before leaping at Dustin, wrestling him to a pin on the ground while ignoring his squawking.
Dustin huffed in annoyance. Mike was getting annoyingly bossy over the last few months and he had gotten it into his head that Dustin and Will needed to learn how to protect themselves. Hence the sparring practice. And it was becoming increasingly clear that Dustin did not have the stamina for this. “Remind me what’s the point of this again?” He could barely get the words out with how his chest was heaving, but he was giving it his best shot. “I mean you and Max are gonna be kick-ass knights. And Jane is a great fighter as well. Why do I need to do this?”
“Because,” Mike lunged forward with the practice sword, Dustin barely catching it with his own. “What if we aren’t there? You can’t always expect us to be there to protect you.”
Two more sweeps and Dustin was off his feet. Again. He took a moment to get his breath back before saying, “Well, maybe. But I could always just run away too.” Mike raised an eyebrow at him and Dustin rolled his eyes, conceding, “Yeah, yeah. Okay, fine.” He accepted Mike’s offered hand, pulling him back up.
They got back in position, but Mike didn’t start up again right away. Dustin began to open his mouth, but, “I just want you guys to be safe.”
Oh… .
“I don’t expect you to have to do anything hard. I just want you to be able to do enough to get away.”
Dustin nodded. He still didn’t quite know how to feel about it, but it was so hard to say no to Mike when he got that face. It wasn’t his son-of-a-marquess authority face. It was the genuine face of his friend who was worried about those he loved. He held up his practice sword, giving him a soft smile as he did so, “Again?”