Sadly, Marley doesn't get as much sleep as he so craved. This is because he is awoken somewhere after midnight to someone shaking him awake.

"C'mon. We're meeting again."

Ah, that's a familiar voice. Marley gets the distant sense that he doesn't like whoever owns it, so he decides to continue sleeping. Or, well, attempt sleeping. It's sort of hard when someone is shaking you and you are freezing cold.

"Go away," Marley mumbles to whoever that is, turning and burying his face into his pillow. There's a blanket around him that he clutches even closer to his body. It doesn't do as much as he wants it to. Why is it so cold?

"Get. Up."

Wow, whoever has that voice is clearly angry. Marley realizes that he is probably the cause of that. Oops.

He's about to try and go right back to sleep—screw whoever is trying to wake him up, he is beyond exhaustion—but then the person actually grabs his arm. Marley is wearing a short sleeved shirt, so they touch his bare skin.

"What the fuck? Did you take a fucking ice bath?"

Okay. Marley's up.

He opens his eyes and rolls into his back, not surprised to be met with his roommate's spooky glowing eyes. Staring at him in the dark. Creepy. Marley doesn't have the time for this, and he's about 90% sure his heart would be beating out of his chest if he had one.

Oh yeah, his heart's gone.

"No," Marley responds groggily. He probably could have figured out a more clever response if he wasn't so tired. Still, that is about the only thing wrong with him. Other than his exhaustion and his coldness, he feels just fine. This is so weird.

As Marley is sitting up, ignoring his freakin' sub zero body temperature, the lights flick on. Even though nobody's at the light switch. Huh. Guess Nero can do that. That's when it hits Marley that Nero can probably do a lot with electricity and stuff. Honestly, Marley never even thought about how cool his power actually is.

Marley's thoughts are interrupted when the very object of them says, "you look like a corpse."

That snaps Marley back, and he immediately notices that he's shaking. Shivering. Not to mention, his skin is white. Not like the healthy tan with red undertones that it usually is. No, it's white, and he's freezing.

Marley immediately stands up. He's wearing a t-shirt and sweat pants, not exactly ideal for his situation. He walks around Nero, thankfully avoiding any contact since he'd probably get electrocuted and Nero would turn into an ice cube. Or something.

"Yeah, well, you look like a lightbulb." Marley mumbles. Judging by the glare he can feel burning his back, Nero still heard him.

"We're meeting back on the roof. If you don't hurry up I'm gonna drag you there."

Marley rolls his eyes, then it registers that he just rolled his eyes at Nero. Maybe the loss of his heart is making him a little meaner? Sure he used to give Nero some attitude, before The Heart Incident, but he's generally just not in the mood for anyone's shit right now. This is gonna get him in trouble.

Marley reaches his dresser and starts going through his clothes. He's pretty sure he has long socks somewhere, and there's a hoodie on his bed. Maybe. Or it might be in the bottom drawer. We'll see.

The socks are in the top drawer. They're just knee high socks with Christmas trees on them. They're thick, which is appreciated since his feet (along with his entire body, of course) are cold. He takes a seat at the end of his bed and rolls up his pant legs, sliding one sock on. It's a little difficult keeping it from rolling when he pulls his pant leg back down, so it takes him some time.

Marley chances a look back at Nero, who looks beyond pissed. Marley really doesn't feel like dealing with it it but this guy can obviously damage him quite a bit, so he hurries up with the next sock. However, as he's looking for his sweatshirt, which is apparently not on the bed, Nero finally snaps.

He grabs Marley's arm—his bare arm— and Marley is about to brace himself for some sort of complaint about how cold he is, but Nero seems prepared for it since it feels like he counteracts it with his own power. That is, if the warmth spreading through Marley's body (like a current) is anything to go by.

Woah.

Nero doesn't even say anything, just yanks Marley out the door and into the hallway. Of course, Marley's too distracted by the fact that he's warm to really be mad about his lack of hoodie.

He cooperates pretty well, until they reach the stairwell and it all catches up with him.

"Hey! I don't want to go to your meeting! I didn't even get my sweatshirt!" He complains, trying to yank his arm out of Nero's near painful grip, despite how much his body protests to it. It's when Marley is almost free—he had been peeling off Nero's fingers one by one—that Nero halts.

There's a small closet in the wall with a plastic-wooden door and a metal handle. It can be easily missed if you're not looking for it, or, in Marley's case, being pulled into it.

Wait, what?

Before Marley can attempt to get away, he's being shoved against the recently closed door and silenced by a hand over his mouth. He's about to ask what in the fresh hell is going on here, but then he hears the footsteps. Almost as if they're in a spy movie, the footsteps stop right outside their door.

"I swear I heard yelling over here." A voice says, and Marley recognizes it as the douche that got Nero in trouble the one time, when he'd been covering for Marley for whatever reason. Which lead into Nero trying to tutor Marley and Marley not being very cooperative. Just generally not a good situation, thanks to this guy.

"Yeah, well, you hear a lot of things, Gil." A second voice says. One that Marley doesn't recognize.

He hears retreating footsteps, but only one pair. Marley is confused, all the way up until he hears the doorknob turning. He can feel the vibration on every inch of his skin. Marley watches in absolute horror as the knob turns, closer and closer to opening and leaving him to probably fall on top of Gilbert.

Holy shit. They're going to get caught.

"Come on! Brazzo wants you on the first floor!"

Just like that, the doorknob pops back into place. Marley actually lets out a sigh of relief when he hears the second pair of footsteps finally leaving, though they linger for a few moments. He listens as they go all the way down the stairs, before he turns his gaze to Nero. He's honestly ready to celebrate not being caught again, but then he sees the look in the man's eyes.

His eyes are glowing even more than usual, and he looks close to absolutely throttling Marley. Okay, whoops. Maybe this is his fault... but they didn't get caught so who cares?

"Nocona, I want you to listen and I want you to listen good, because I'm only saying this once."

Marley hasn't seen Nero this angry since they first met. To the point where his eyes are nearly blinding and every time he opens his mouth there's a light emitting. He's lighting up the utility closet with his anger, literally. All Marley can do is nod. Okay, maybe he is still a little scared of this guy even without his heart. Sue him.

"You and I both know that you aren't a part of this by force. You're here because you want to be, you want to help us, even if you don't want to admit it to yourself. No blackmail could have made you do anything you didn't want to—you're the fucking prince, even if everyone hates you. Nobody was going to force you into anything. It was a test."

Is this happening? Is Marley still dreaming?

"If you honest to god don't want to help us," he finally takes his hand off of Marley's mouth and rests it against the door frame, his other still on Marley's arm. "You can go back to the room and we'll never bother you again. Wait for them to figure out how to kill you, if that's even possible. Take the throne and keep making our lives a living hell. You know, assuming you survive. Or."

He backs away and crosses his arms, leaving Marley to shiver since they aren't touching anymore. "You can come with me, and we'll put an end to this."

Marley can't help but to stare up at him with wide eyes. He feels like he just got called out. So, yeah, there are definitely things he could have done to keep himself out of this situation. Honestly, their little video wouldn't have been on the internet for very long anyway. Probably not even a full minute.

It's like someone just slapped Marley in the face and screamed the truth in his face. Something he'd been trying so desperately not to acknowledge, but now he has no choice. He does want to help these people. He's not his father, no matter how much he's always tried to be, but maybe... maybe he could be better. He could rule better. Deep down he always knew abnormal people were treated like dirt. He did. However, experiencing it—knowing that his dad is the reason he doesn't have a vital organ in his body right now, for instance—well, it's putting a lot of things in perspective.

He's the only one with enough power to change it. He can agree with the fact that maybe people with powers like this should be regulated. They shouldn't be able to just do whatever they want all the time, it would be absolute chaos. However, all of these institutions that are torturing people. Breaking their spirits. Tearing them down so that they don't even want to be themselves anymore?

It's too much. He can't stand for it.

Maybe he knew that all along...

However, to abandon his family for a group of random people that were planning his death a few weeks ago? He'd be going against everything he was taught. His dad would absolutely despise him. Loathe him. Marley would become everything his father told him not to trust.

Marley needs his heart back. He shouldn't make this decision without it. His thinking isn't right. He isn't himself. He can't put a finger on what exactly is wrong—physically he's about fine—but his mind doesn't feel stable. It's like he can't put a filter on his emotions. They all just pour through.

The dam that had been holding back Marley's true feelings is gone. Marley cant think his decisions or his thoughts through anymore. He needs his heart back.

Marley needs his heart.

However, for the time being, he feels as though his best choice is;

"Okay," Marley wraps his arms around himself because he's shivering again. He needs to invest in a self heating blanket. "I'll help you, but I have two conditions."

Nero tilts his head, his mouth in a firm line. He's studying Marley. At least his glowing is dimmed, though his red eyes are vibrant as ever. Marley takes the lack of acknowledgement as his cue to go on, so he holds up one sickly white finger.

"One, we're not killing my dad." Glad that's out of the way. He doesn't wait for an answer before he holds up a second one, "two, we're doing a different plan because the one you guys have now sucks."

Nero glares at him. "It's a work in progress."

Marley can't help but to wonder just how long these guys have been conspiring together. Long enough to plan Marley's assassination, if he remembers them mentioning correctly. They said something like that. Stop the problem by taking out the heir or some... thing...

Wait a second.

"Hang on. Are you people the ones that tried to kill me?"

Nero looks at Marley like he is the actual stupidest person in the world. Marley just raises his eyebrows because that doesn't answer his question. Also he's cold and tired and he either wants Nero to touch him again or a blanket. Whichever works. He's getting impatient.

"In case you didn't notice, dipshit, we're locked in this place."

Marley crosses his arms and leans back against the door, squinting. Sounds like excuses. "You didn't answer my question."

Aside from the unfiltered emotions, the loss of Marley's heart seems to be doing wonders for his anxiety. All he's gotta do is solve the cold problem and he'll be unstoppable. About two weeks ago he would have peed himself at the thought of simply frowning at the temperamental man, but look at him now! Questioning Nero's authority. That's called progress.

"We didn't shoot you, Nocona." he snaps, reaching over and turning the doorknob so that Marley stumbles back. He has to catch himself on the doorway, and sends a glare of his own right at Nero, who doesn't even look at him as he brushes past. Marley ignores the urge to find some excuse to continue their contact—for the body heat, obviously—and follows him out into the stairwell.

Time to get this over with.