Marcus

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"Look at you. You're a mess! You really ignored our advice..." - Chapter Fifteen

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 Age
 Birthday
 Nationality
 Residence
 Family
 Goals
 First Appearance

Marcus is the roommate and companion to Roland and Dylan Springbell, and acts as a foil to the both of them. He seems to have a fairly good amount of street smarts, and is blunt about the racism situation going on in Melbourne. However, despite his "negativity", he remains a loyal friend to Petunia, and he's someone she can turn to when she's feeling down.

## Appearance

Marcus is a dark-skinned and slim male, who appears to be quite tall, though he has no confirmed height. He has somewhat shaggy black or dark brown hair, and green eyes. He dresses sharply, often in blazers and vests, and usually is wearing a green bow-tie. He often will wear a green overcoat as well. He's usually seen smoking cigarettes.

## Personality

Marcus is the blunt character of his trio of friends, and often shown looking uninterested or bored. He's not afraid to say something as it is without decorating it up, as he tells Petunia that it's because she's an Aboriginal that she'll have difficulty getting a job with white employers. He seems to be the most logical, or at least chooses logic over the others, of the trio, as he was the one who connected to Meredith, and he believed that Petunia should live with Norah, because she's a girl. Marcus is somewhat of a "lone wolf" type, especially considering that he spent a good deal of his time before living with Dylan and Rolls by himself, and understands why Petunia would rather support herself rather than have others help her out.

## History

**\*MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD! PLEASE READ WITH CAUTION!\***

### ***Chapters 6-10***

Marcus, along with Rolls, appear in the first flashback chapter when Petunia, under her alias "Pete", is trying to get a job in town. After she's knocked into the garbage, the pair of them emerge from the shadows to help her up. They introduce themselves, and Rolls tries to offer Petunia advice that the employers she's seeking out won't hire her. When Petunia claims that she doesn't understand, Marcus tells her it's because the employers are white, and won't hire her because of her race. Petunia pushes herself away from the pair, and Marcus tells her that if she can't get that into her head, she's better off going back home. However, hearing the familiar echo of what Elijah, Todd, and Marcus have all said to her, she gets pissed off and leaves them behind.

### ***Chapters 11-15***

Petunia, feeling down, heads out to another part of town and knocks on the door of an apartment. Marcus is the one who answers it, who welcomes her in and fetches her tea and snacks. However, Marcus and Rolls can both tell that she's distressed, so they sit with her and try to comfort her, before Dylan comes to the apartment. Rolls hides Petunia, but Dylan sees right through it and pulls her out. The two exchange insults, before Marcus and Rolls pull him away from her to tell him that she's "got the blues". They watch as Dylan plays the violin for her to cheer her up, and follow him outside when he goes to play in the streets. When Dylan tells a reluctant Petunia to dance and forget her troubles, Marcus and Rolls dance with her.

In the second flashback chapter, Marcus is seen with Rolls and Dylan when Petunia accidentally smashes her face into the concrete outside an alleyway, and they scold her for not taking their advice. She yells at them that they sound like her brother, which prompts Dylan's connection to her, and to reveal that she's a girl. Marcus doesn't believe him until Petunia collapses on the pavement and the trio take her back to their apartment. Dylan later tells her the story of him meeting her brother's in Melbourne, to which Marcus was present. While Dylan and Elijah have a personal conversation, Marcus sits with Rolls and Meredith, the latter being completely quiet. When Rolls fails to liven up the atmosphere, Marcus prompts Meredith that he's a "thinking type", but acknowledges that he's been thinking about Elijah for the whole time they've been there. Rolls exclaims that Meredith's look and type are a perfect addition to the band, and they seemingly drag him off to make him their "new clarinet player", according to Norah.

After the story, Dylan decides that since Petunia has no means to care for herself, that she will live with the three of them, and he leaves with Rolls. However, Marcus leads her out of the apartment. He tells Petunia that he understands why she feels crushed that she has to receive help, why she wants to be alone, and why she disguised herself as a boy, but he wishes she would be more honest. He takes her to Norah's place, she invites the both of them in, seeing as Dylan isn't with them, and makes them coffee. Marcus reveals to Petunia that she's going to stay with Norah instead. When Dylan tries to come in and fight with Norah, Marcus is the one who tells him it would be better this way, and settles the two of them down.

## Relationships

### ***Roland***

Roland is Marcus's close friend; the duo seem to be inseparable, due to their constant companionship. It also appears that they have been friends for quite a few years. They live together in a small apartment, along with their friend Dylan. Roland accompanies Marcus on his outings throughout Melbourne, including trying to help out the new arrivals who are trying to make their lives in the city. The duo attempt to to define the difference between the situation of the communities outside of the city, and the dark, racist reality of city employment. Nevertheless, Roland acts as a cheery foil and companion to Marcus, who are usually on the same page with most matters. Marcus values his friendship with Roland, as he feels better not being alone.

### ***Dylan Springbell***

Dylan is a close friend of Marcus's, who apparently sees himself as the leader of the trio. Dylan and Marcus, along with Roland, likely met soon after Dylan came to Melbourne from Alice Springs. While Marcus finds him annoying at times, and occasionally a nuisance, he appears to value his friendship with Dylan, and he likely is thankful to have him as a friend so that he wouldn't be alone in Melbourne.

### ***Petunia Elkwood***

Petunia is a friend of Marcus's, who met him whenever she first came to Melbourne and attempted to get a job from white employers, while under the guise of "Pete". After being pushed into the garbage, Marcus, along with Roland, made clear that whites wouldn't hire her because she's Aboriginal. They later run into her when she crashes to the pavement, and Marcus notices that she failed to take any of their advice. When Dylan discovers that she's actually the younger sister of Elijah, and she collapses to the pavement, he helps take her back to their apartment. After Dylan tells her about his encounter with Elijah and Meredith, and Dylan decides that Petunia will live with them, Marcus takes it into his own hands to bring her to Norah. He has Petunia's best interests in mind, even if he has to defy what Dylan thinks to do so. Later, when Petunia shows up at his apartment, he invites her in for tea and snacks, and tries to cheer her up whenever she shows that she's feeling down, calling her the pet name "ducky". While the two don't see each other daily, it's clear that Marcus cares a lot about Petunia, and Petunia can go to him when she feels distressed.

### ***Norah***

Norah is a friend of Marcus's. She and Marcus appear to be the most responsible of their friends, as Marcus goes to her whenever Dylan tries to bring Petunia into his apartment, and Marcus believes that she would be better with Norah. They seem to be longtime friends, as they sit and chat about business and friends that come and go from the city.

## Quotes

*"Listen carefully, these whites will never hire you. It doesn't matter what they say. They never ever will. The sooner you understand that, the better. You should go back to where you came from."* (to Petunia Elkwood, Chapter Ten)

*"See? The world's got her down!"* (to Dylan Springbell about Petunia Elkwood, Chapter Fourteen)

*"I used to be alone all the time. I thought I didn't need anybody and I could live the way I did forever. Everyone else was a bother. I don't think I can go back to that. Back to being alone. It'd be too quiet and I'd be scared. Scared of only hearing my own thoughts ... I wish you didn't lie about yourself. But... I guess I can see why you did it."* (to Petunia Elkwood, Chapter Fifteen)