He had completely forgotten about helping his mother, and the state she was in, his face falling immediately. Still, Ella's words brought Marken hope. She clearly knew what she was talking about, far more than he did, at any rate. Nodding to Ella, he picked up the piece of paper that she had written down the symptoms on, having dropped it when they had wrapped themselves in each others arms. He began to look over it, committing them to memory so that he could know what was wrong with his mother. If what she said was true, his mother could be fully recovered by the end of the week.

He gave her his own beaming smile, one that completely reflected his hope, and the trust he placed in Ella as well. Strange, that he was entrusting his mothers life to a woman who had four days ago held him at knife point. He supposed it couldn't be helped, that he had fallen in love with the girl. "I'll go see her now then, Ella. Just... I'm trusting you here with my heart, try not to break it?" He sounded vulnerable again, suddenly pulling Ella into a hug and gripping her tightly. "I don't think I could forgive you if you did..." The words were barely whispered into her ear, before Marken let her go, standing up and straightening out his clothing.

With that, he walked out of Ella's room, putting on a very passive face by the time he was in the hall, making sure that it wouldn't be obvious to anyone what had occurred in the room. His stride was purposeful, taking him down the hall, past several armed guards. Clearly, security had been increased with the poisoning of his mother, the closer he got to his parents bedchamber, the more guards he encountered, until entire squadrons of royal soldiers were seen walking through the halls. Of course, given his own status, they allowed him through without so much as a second glance. He was the prince, afterall, who was to tell him that he couldn't visit his parents in their bedchambers?