A Meeting in an Attempt to Cure

"It's nice to meet you, Marine," Marius said. It amused him slightly that both of their names began with the first three letters, but be didn't bother to mention it. Upon hearing that she would let him sit there, he nodded, and did so, sitting about a foot away from her. He folded his wings against his back and was silent for a moment. The seventeen-year-old had never been great at conversations, but he supposed he could be the first to talk about something.

"How are you on this fine evening, Marine?" he asked her.

Not good. Not good, not good, not good. Marius shrugged his shoulders, trying to decide if he should lie or not. He was usually a very honest person, and even though he was good at telling lies, much preferred to tell the truth. However, he didn't want her to think that the only reason he was up here was because the Headmistress had sent him... even though it really was.

"Oh, nothing really," he answered, deciding not to tell the whole truth, but at least part of it, and it was quite hard to tell he was hiding something. "I just felt like I had to come up here, for some reason or another, not entirely sure, really. And you?"

Marius was immediately glad that he hadn't mentioned the Headmistress had sent him. She might have run away if he had told her the truth. A slightly confused look came to his face when she mentioned that the doctors might find out about something, and he wondered what it was. He would have asked, but she had dropped the subject, and he didn't think it would be wise to revive it.

"This is my first day here, actually," he told her when asked how long he had been there. "Not very long at all. And yourself, Marine?"

The seventeen-year-old was silent. Darkness? What was this? He had never heard of such a thing going on at the school. Then again, he didn't know much about this place. Marius wasn't sure whether or not he should ask, because this might have been what she didn't want to talk about before. However, being the kind and caring young gentleman he was, he couldn't stand to see her seem upset. "That's when... what happened?" he asked her quietly.

Marius waited patiently for her to explain. As soon as she did, he listened intently, wanting to know if there was any way in which he could help her. Upon hearing this story, he blinked. Wow... he had no idea such a thing had happened to this academy. He felt bad for her, seeing as how a mark had been left on her that control her emotions. After she put her head on her knees, he had a feeling she was about to give bad news.

"They'll see that... Bit by bit... my heart is ceasing to beat..."

At this, the young man's eyes widened. Her heart beat was slowing, and was eventually going to stop? Oh, no. He would simply not allow such a thing. He couldn't allow her to die just because she didn't want to see a doctor. It seemed cruel to stand there and watch as she, slowly but surely, slipped away, while he could help her. "Miss Marine..." Marius began, "regardless as to whether or not you want the doctors to find out, you must go there. If they find out the truth, they may be able to help you. I don't want to just watch you as you begin to die while there's help right in this academy."