Marco's Heart

[peccatore]

You find yourself in a bright white, circular room. It's nearly empty; too bare, almost clinically so. But the bareness of it means that what is visible here stands out:

A podium in the center, where a familiar figure sits, head buried in his hands. Three paths running from the podium to three different spots near the edges of the room - not corners; circles don't have corners - where three doors leading seemingly nowhere stand with no regard for their complete lack of structural support.

It doesn't take you long to figure out where you are, does it? You only have to decide where to start.

Comments

[voidofhearts]

[Vague recollections... she doesn't really have many memories of the city off-campus, but it's still similar enough to feel familiar. It's a strange enough feeling to snap her out of her frustration.]

Huh... this is... California, isn't it?

[peccatore]

"So you're familiar! Thaaat's right, didn't you go to college somewhere nearby?"

Not that Kaph is all that interested, but, well, he IS still just a part of Marco's head.

[voidofhearts]

Standford, yeah.

[Squinting at Kaph a little. She's having a hard time gauging when Marco is bleeding through the role.]

[peccatore]

"... What?" He narrows his eyes right back.

[voidofhearts]

...Nothing. Just...

...What did you mean by "this one's vague"

[peccatore]

"I mean what I said. Do you even see Marco here, for starters?"

There ARE sounds coming from deeper in the alley.

[voidofhearts]

Mmm...

[gonna take a closer look...]

[peccatore]

Well, Marco is, in fact, a little further into the alley. He's leaning against a wall, looking... perhaps less put-together than you have ever seen him before, with the possible exception of that last memory Agnes showed you. His hair looks like it was disheveled even before the rain flattened it down, and his tie is hanging on stubbornly under a collar that certainly isn't as high as Marco seems to prefer.

He looks exhausted. And sort of scruffy.

[voidofhearts]

Marco...?

[increasingly concerned]

[peccatore]

He doesn't appear to see you before he smashes his fist against the wall behind him, leaving sizeable cracks. Annoyingly, Kaphlar is hovering right behind you.

"Heheh. He's mad."

Marco slams his fist into the wall again. Then a third time. Then he slides down until he's sitting on the ground, shaking.

"D... Damn it. Damn him...!"

[voidofhearts]

Marco...

[walks up and puts a hand on his shoulder]

[peccatore]

He flinches, tensing up.

[voidofhearts]

Eeep-!

[Withdraws her hands]

Was that the... wrong thing to do?

[peccatore]

"N-No. I... No."

His shoulders slump.

"I just... wasn't expecting you."

[voidofhearts]

I'm kind of getting the tour here, whether I like it or not.

...Kaphlar said this memory was vague. Does that mean it's not a specific moment?

[peccatore]

"It... It is. You just-- You interrupted..."

A woman's voice suddenly rings out, somewhere above them yet impossibly close.

"Damned son! Letting his thoughts sink into sin!"

"T-That. Them," Marco mumbles.

"Begging for forgiveness while his heart sings for a man's blood..." A man's voice, this time. "Oh, poor son. Oh, wretched son."

[voidofhearts]

[Hello??? She looks around, startled]

H-huh? Who's there...?

[peccatore]

"Nobody~"

Again, Kaphlar is very much not respecting anybody's personal space here. He hovers over Marco's other shoulder, leaning over with an arm directly on top of Marco's head.

"Didn't Marco tell you he's so crazy even a jury took pity on him? He can't even think about how much he wants to kill me without feeling like the voices in his head are going to send him to Hell!"

[voidofhearts]

The... hallucinations. Right. Since I'm in his heart, I can hear them too...

...Rude way for you to put it though.

[peccatore]

"Hey, I'm just saying it like it is."

[voidofhearts]

Are you now.

[peccatore]

"Quick question, are you just arguing with me because I'm mean now, or are you paying attention to what's happening?" He sneers. "You're lucky you got Marco's attention before he started hallucinating, you know."

[voidofhearts]

...I am paying attention. Promise. And I'm not arguing that he doesn't hallucinate, or wasn't ordered to civil commitment. But framing it as pity... using it to derride him...

...I guess the answer is "both." I'm arguing because I want to pay attention and judge for myself. And because you're mean.

[peccatore]

"... You're annoyingly good at this, kid."

[voidofhearts]

Thank... you?

... Which part?