When Marco opened the door to find Emma and Mother Superior outside his first impulse was to smile and invite them inside. But the look on their faces made him hesitate.
"What's wrong?"
"Marco, I…" Emma's voice wavered slightly and Marco felt dread settle in his stomach.
"Pinocchio, my boy, have - have you found my boy?" But both Emma and Blue shook their heads, and his fear faded until it was back to the dull worry he had almost grown accustomed to. He opened the door wide and gestured for them to come in. "Then what is it? What's wrong?"
"Marco, it's-it's Archie."
"Archie?" Marco looked at Emma in confusion as he led them into the living room. "Jiminy? What about him?"
"I'm sorry, Marco. He's… Regina, she... she killed him. We found him in his office. There was nothing we could do. He's… he's gone."
"No, of course he isn't!" Marco scoffed, the reply immediate. What a silly notion! Jiminy was eternal. Jiminy had promised to never leave him, and he had never known his friend to go back on a promise.
The mournful look Emma gave him made him distinctly uncomfortable. She was wrong, he told himself. It was not possible. He shook his head. Archie would not leave; Jiminy would not break his promise. It was all a big misunderstanding, of that he was sure.
But looking at Emma's sad face he could tell she was not lying. And turning to Blue he saw the same truth reflected in her teary eyes. Without warning his knees buckled and he sat down heavily, suddenly deathly tired. 'Archie wouldn't leave, Jiminy wouldn't leave me.' The thought churned around in his head. 'Archie wouldn't leave, Jiminy wouldn't leave, he wouldn't leave, he promised he wouldn't leave…' He didn't hear Emma ask him if he was all right, nor did he hear Mother Superior gently telling Emma to go. The Saviour hesitated only for a moment before obeying, her heart breaking at the sight of the old man staring out into nothingness, eyes haunted and bright with unshed tears.
As the door closed behind her Blue gently pulled Marco into a warm embrace and in a soft voice whispered soothing nonsense into his ear. And even though it was the wrong embrace, not Archie's embrace; the wrong voice, not Jiminy's voice… he finally let the tears fall.