Toffee's Trick

Chapter 17

They sat on the hard plastic chairs outside the hospital in the corridor. Star kept her hands clasped and shaking in her lap. Her head was bent down but her eyes looked directly into Doctor Tina's, to see if she was lying. Tina took a deep breath and said, very gently and slowly,

"Alright. Princess, I've got some good news and some bad news. So, here's the overview: Mr Diaz has been severely dehydrated and starved; we're guessing he hasn't been given any food or water for about a week. We have him on a drip which will give him the vital nutrients he needs, and if... or when, he wakes up, we are going to have to be very careful with what he eats, because his stomach is extremely damaged.
He's got a deep and infected cut on his left palm, which we have dressed and bandaged, and his right arm is very badly broken at the elbow. Because it has been left, the bone has started to reheal, so we had to rebreak it in order to but it in the right position to heal. It's in a cast and we're hoping that there won't be any difference to his arm movement when it's off- but it's a possibility." She took a deep breath.

"Right, so... the stab wound. Yes. The depth and considerable size of the wound meant that lots of stitches and a skin graft was necessary to reseal the hole. Vital tissue has been severely damaged in his stomach and abdomen. The appendix was ripped, but fortunately that organ is mostly useless and sometimes has to be removed anyway. The left lung was nicked with the blade and that caused some internal bleeding, but it is not too severe and we've managed to keep it stable- but Mr Diaz may have some difficulties with that in the future.
However... This is actually where the bit of good news comes in: Because of the dark magic in Mr Diaz, which we're guessing was inflicted through the knife used to stab him, the blood loss was not as severe as it would have been. Needless to say, the amount of blood he has lost means he needs a blood transplant, which we are preparing right now. But the dark magic in his blood stream means there's a chance that his body won't accept the new blood. It's vital for Mr Diaz's survival that his body does accept, because without a successful blood transplant... I'm afraid if doesn't look good. Right now, he's on a drip and life support, because his breathing was very ragged and weak. We hope CPR won't be necessary at any point." Doctor Tina looked up at Star. She hadn't moved all through the speech, and now she slowly raised her hands from clasped in her lap to her face, putting them over her nose and mouth like a mask. She closed her eyes.

"Princess Star, I'm afraid that... that isn't all," Doctor Tina said timidly. Star opened her eyes and looked up mistily at her. Tina cleared her throat. "I- I afraid that Mr Diaz... Marco, he... he might not be the- the same Marco, that- that you knew."

Star took her hands away from her face and stared at her, tears in her eyes.

"The dark magic," she whispered.

"That's right," said Tina. "We don't know what effect it has had in him yet. When... or if he wakes up, we can assess the damage. But we need to be prepared."

"I understand," Star said quietly.

"And... if the dark magic has effected him, and this is the... the bad news I was speaking about." She looked at her feet. "In my experience, dark magic only gets worse. It festers. It grows. It takes over. And usually, it's terminal. Now, Star," Tina looked her in the face and continued very seriously,

"Everyone, Mewman, human or Monster, has darkness in them. Most people don't let it affect them. For most people, it comes out when they're angry or upset, but usually it doesn't affect them so much that it changes their personality. However, some people, like Ludo and Toffee, let the darkness in them dictate their actions and decide their whole lives. Listen to me," Tina put a hand on Star's knee. "I am not saying that Marco is a bad person. I'm saying that he has darkness in him, like we all do, but... we were surprised to find that it was aided with magic. It has form. And this is complicating the whole matter with the dark magic now added to his system."

Star suddenly moaned and put her head in her hands.

"That was me!" She groaned.