The next generation (The strings of fate)

Marocelli POV

Maro woke up with a sick feeling in his stomach. He had tossed and turned most of the night after a lengthy conversation with his father and mother. After a while Baldassare had come to talk to him. They had discussed what could be done, what shouldn't be done. He had gone to bed with his head throbbing and an ache in his chest.

As he rolled out of the bed he thought about something Baldassare had said. "The only way to get through it is to control it."

The idea made Maro feel sick. He hadn't told Constance what they had discussed. He only told her that someone would meet them in a couple days to see if they could help in some way. Maro got out of bed, Maude silently followed him outside. He tried to do his daily exercises. It distracted him only momentarily. The moment he rested on the damp grass and stared up at the blue sky, wisps of the smoke from the north could be seen. It brought him back to the conversation and the decision he was slowly coming to.

Constance could be heard in the kitchen making food for the two of them, she wasn't humming like she normally would. He almost didn't go inside. Laying there in the grass deep in his thoughts. His body had other ideas as his stomach rumbled, aching since he hadn't been very hungry the past few days. The idea was good and was unappealing to him, but he forced himself to get up and go inside to her.

She had some food out already for him, she worked on some more for herself and a wave of her wand and two glasses of orange juice floated to the table. She finished making her food and it floated to the table as well. She gracefully walked across the room and took a seat. "Are you hungry?" She looked at Maro with a small smile.

"A bit." He answered softly as he sat down with her. He picked at the food, his mind still swirling with thoughts. Constance ate with him in silence, she had her notebook open next to her and she was staring at an empty page, her mind seemed a little occupied. Maro didn't say anything, distracted himself as he forced himself to eat. After a while the food didn't taste as good anymore so he slid it away. He rubbed his head, elbows on the table as he closed his eyes, thinking.

Constance cleaned up the dishes from their breakfast, she passed by him sitting at the table and rubbed her hand in a soothing manner across his back before she left the room periodically, she returned in a different outfit that was more form fitting than her other ones. She walked outside and began to stretch, then she started her own workout routine.

Maro watched her, silent. Sadness had settled in his gaze. He didn't have any options. He had promised he would deliver the message to the woman. Maro wondered how far he could take temporary life with black magic inside of him without taking it too far. He'd seen the horrors it could do. He'd heard the stories and read warnings when he was young. He'd been terrified when the magic had tried to take him. Maro looked away from her now, upset with himself.

He should be stronger than this, he chided himself for actually considering doing something so hypocritical. Maro stood up, not realizing he practically stormed out of the house. Once outside he shoved his hands in his pockets and paced. Constance watched him with worried eyes. "Is everything okay Maro?" She asked him softly.

"There's only one way in. Flying is pointless if there is nowhere to land along the way. Protective barriers can only handle the black magic for so long before it disintegrates. Blasting it with attack spells would take too long and would drain us before we even started. Hovering spells would bring us too close to the ground and we'd be dragged in. Building a bridge would drain all of our magic reservoirs and would be pointless as I'm sure the black magic would find its way up. Or eat it all together." Maro rambled, his voice loud, thick with frustration. He stopped pacing, his head hung a bit before he sighed. "Once we talk to a friend of my family I'm not sure what they can suggest... but I already know the answer." Maro said, jaw clenched, self directed anger glimmered in his eyes.