"Say pal,", Maxwell started off, the sound of his own voice unfamiliar after not using it for a while. "You don't look so good."
The sound of the man's cries quiets down and the scientist looked up at the other in surprise.
"W-What do you want?", Wilson asked, hiccuping.
"Nothing.", Maxwell replied. Maxwell rolled the answer around in his mind but it didn't quite fit. If he wanted nothing then why was he there?
"Sure. The great Maxwell came all this way for nothing!", Wilson says, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Maybe you came here to laugh..Well, what are you waiting for? Go ahead! Laugh!"
Maxwell eyes widened at the shadows dancing around on the floor, seeming to revel in the scientist's anger but he pried his eyes away from them. Said scientist didn't even notice them in his anger and that was a good thing.
"Why would I laugh if I was in the situation not so long ago? Honestly Higgsbury, do you think so low of me?", Maxwell says as he walks towards the scientist.
"After all the things you did to me, nothing would surprise me.", Wilson said. He still looked mad but the shadows stopped dancing and slithered back under the throne which was a good sign.
"Higgsbury, I'm appalled. Do you greet all guests with such a temper?", Maxwell asked. He was right in front of Wilson now.
"You didn't exactly treat me so great when I first came to this world you know.", Wilson grumbled.
"Hmph, touché. I didn't come here to torment you, even though that does sound quite amusing. I came bearing gifts.", Maxwell says and Wilson raises an eyebrow.
"Gifts?", He asks.
"Is there an echo in here?", Maxwell says with a smirk. He takes off his backpack, reaching inside and taking something out carefully.
"These silly things..I have no use for them but I remembered how you seemed to value such things in your time.", Maxwell says. He holds out a flower crown that is a bit poorly made due to the magician's inexperience with such things, but it makes the scientist's fave light up nonetheless.
"A flower crown..", The scientist says in slight awe. Maxwell smiles slightly at puts it on the other's head. It amazed him how such a simple thing made such a difference.
Wilson smiled for a moment but then it quickly fell and tears came to his eyes again, the scientist rapidly blinking to try and push the back.
"Why are you crying? I gave you the damn flower crown!", Maxwell says. Why wasn't he happy?
This didn't seem to help the scientist at all though because tears fell freely from his eyes now. Maxwell didn't understand. This wasn't how it was supposed to go. But then it clicked.
Putting a flower crown on his head and making snide remarks wouldn't fix anything. It wasn't going to change the inevitable. Maxwell could visit the scientist all he wanted in the dark place that sparked memories he was still trying to forget but the cycle would still start over again.
Wilson was going to soon feel nothing but hatred and pain and the shadows are going to feed off of it. They were going to feed off of it and sure Wilson might feel some thrills for a while of having so much power over this world but pretty soon he'll grow numb and cold just like Maxwell did. Then there would be nothing left until some other fool came in to make the same mistake.
"Maxwell…", Wilson said which snapped the other out of his thoughts. "I don't want to stay here. I don't want to be trapped here."
Maxwell's mouth felt dry hearing those broken words. What was he supposed to say? He wasn't about to go and volunteer himself to sit on that throne again. All he could do was stand there feeling numb.
"Please, I just want to go home.", The scientist whimpered.
"I can't do anything.", Maxwell says. Was he telling Wilson or himself?
"I'm scared."
"I know."
"I'm so cold."
"You'll get used to it."
"Let me free."
"I can't"
"Then kill me."
It was a simple demand, one that Maxwell was familiar with. He would have cosidered it too if he could, stabbing a spear into the scientist's heart like he wished someone did for him but he knew the shadows wouldn't let him go.
"That's not an option. And the sooner you come to terms with that the easier things will be.", Maxwell says. The scientist had only been there for two weeks. How was he so broken already?
"So I have no options?", Wilson asks, his voice still trembling.
"No. At least, not really. You can fight the temptation of using the shadows but it will win eventually..All you can do is keep living and try to keep those things that are important to you in your heart.", And with that Maxwell takes one final look at the scientist with dead eyes sickly pale skin and walks away.
"Wait! Where are you going!", Wilson calls out for him but he doesn't look back.
"P-Please! Please come back, don't leave me alone here!", There's pure terror in his voice.
Maxwell stops his steps and glances back at the terrified scientist and his mind reeled. What was he doing?
"I'll be back.", He said before he could stop himself. Was it a lie he just told? No, Maxwell felt certain he would be drawn back into the same damn room. He knew that he had no power to help the scientist out of his situation and that Wilson was doomed but what were you supposed to say to a dying man?
"Promise?", Wilson asked.
"Promise."