<div style="text-align: justify;">At each word said by Nanook, Marissa felt more and more tempted to accept his offer. Who was she to say anything about insanity? The poster child for insanity,<span style="font-style: italic"> that’s</span> who she was. And trading a kind of insanity that made her suffer for another one that made her happy didn’t sound too bad. And a part of Marissa felt drawn to Nanook. Some part of her felt that, if he were to turn her into what he was, he would stick around and look after her… and she would be able to look after him.<br/><br/>Feeling her heart race and her cheeks warm, Marissa looked away from Nanook for a moment. Deciding to try and not be so shy for a while, she took a deep breath and looked back at him. Her lips parted, and the words kept hanging from them, silently. <br/><br/>It sounded incredibly painful, but incredibly liberating. After the pain, it sounded like a new life. A life in which she would have nothing to fear. A life in which, maybe, she never had to feel ashamed of herself again. Maybe she could even do something good.<br/><br/>Her eyes widened a little when she remembered the rumors of people popping up here and there, seemingly attacked by a wild animal. She didn’t need to ask. For some reason, something inside her knew.<br/><br/>After a moment’s hesitation, she spoke quietly, but firmly. “I’m in. But… you will be with me while it all happens, won’t you?”. She shook her head almost as though someone had asked her a question. “I won’t change my mind. We can do this wherever and whenever you say. No matter how it is, it can’t be worse than the life I’m living now”.<br/><br/>Finishing what she had to say, Marissa looked up at the night sky. “I believe you will have to teach me a lot after… the change? Or does some kind of instinct kick in?”, the girl asked, curiosity burning in her eyes.</div>