Chapter Text
After their agreement, Norman was promptly brought to his room. They both agreed it’d be best to go back since it was the first time that Norman was out of his room and they probably shouldn’t abuse the privilege-- especially if their trust in Emma wasn’t completely there yet.
They said their goodbyes and Emma made her way to the observation room. Upon entering, all eyes were on her, almost if they were anticipating some news. Emma put her hands on her hips and gave them all a wide smile. “See? Nothing happened, and look how much happier he is now!” She pointed towards Norman’s smiling and content face through the camera’s screen as he looked through his selection of books on his room’s bookshelf.
Some of the scientists' shoulders dropped out of relief. It slightly offended Emma that they anticipated something bad to happen, but she quickly let it go. She walked around the room, checking up on the scientists’ work, and thought of a wonderful idea that would not only raise morale but also raise their trust in her.
She broke the silence. “What would you all say if I brought you food from the outside?” Immediately all the scientists in the room raised their heads to look at her. Some looked skeptical while others looked at her anticipating her next words.
“You all have been working hard, and you all also haven’t been home in months. I for one would know that the food they serve here for us isn’t exactly premium quality, so just write down on a list what you all would like and I will bring it for you.” She gave them a sincere and friendly smile. Emma was sure that bringing them food would make them favor her more. They all gave her a quick nod and began to talk between themselves.
“I’ll be taking my leave. Keep up the good work.” She began to walk out of the room, but one of the scientists spoke up.
“Thank you, Miss Ratri.” One of the scientists thanked her and soon after that, gratitude came from the other scientists. This made Emma feel proud, she was proud that she seemed to be gaining her team’s favor.
“Of course! Oh, don’t forget to give that list to everyone including the night team. I’ll pick up the list tomorrow.” She now walked out of the room with confidence. Emma felt good about herself, not only had she come to an understanding with Norman on their stance on escape, her team seemed to trust her more which would only help with their escape.
Emma decided she would go to her office. She would now have to plan on going back to her family's estate to get the food items her team wanted, which also meant she would see her family. She dreaded seeing them after what Peter told her, but it was something she’d have to do eventually.
As she walked into her office, she saw Smee walking down the hall. Emma liked Smee, he was an understanding man who showed no distrust in Emma since the beginning. She had wondered why he treated her like an ally rather than an enemy when everyone else treated her as such.
“Hello Smee! I just dropped off Norman and I’m preparing a treat for my team, I’m sure the other will fill you in on it.” Emma felt like she could trust Smee, he radiated a calming aura just as her late brother James had.
He smiled at her and adjusted his glasses. “Thank you Miss Ratri. Now I have something to look forward to don’t I?” He laughed at his joke and Emma followed suit.
“Good to know, I’ll be returning to my office now. Feel free to drop by if you need something.” She gave him a quick nod and began to walk towards her office.
“Actually,” Smee called out to her, “there is something I’ve been meaning to discuss with you. It’s quite important.” His expression was sharp and serious. This caught Emma’s attention and also made her worried if it had something to do with Norman.
“Let’s talk in my office.” They both made their way to Emma’s office. Upon arriving, she unlocked the door and they both had a seat. Emma sat on a couch that had a coffee table in front of it and another couch on the other side of the coffee table which Smee took a seat in. He set down his clipboard making himself comfortable. Emma quickly peeked at his clipboard, it seemed to have information on Norman’s experiments.
She didn’t know the precise details of Norman’s experiments because she is not a scientist. All her job is, is to lead her team and approve anything big they were going to do. She’d be none the wiser if they decided to do something behind her back. That’s, unfortunately, the reality behind the situation, she trusted that Norman would tell her if they did anything sketchy though. That’s a reason why she liked to ask Norman what he did during his day; so that she could know if they did anything that wasn’t approved by her.
“Well, what is it Smee?” She crossed her legs.
“Miss Ratri, what do you think about William Minerva?” His question caught her off guard. It was one of the topics that have an unspoken rule in Lambda: do not talk about anything involving James Ratri. It was a topic that was forbidden to be brought up, so why is Smee, a head scientist at this facility, speaking his name?
“What do you mean? Are you speaking of my brother James or simply of his alias?” She defaulted to shield herself of any implications of involvement. Emma did not go this far to gain trust back, only for it to be ruined at this moment.
“I’m speaking of both, they are one and the same after all.” She looked at him taking his glasses off only to wipe with a handkerchief before putting them back on.
“My stance is still that my brother James was a wonderful person that made a mistake.” Emma replied plainly because this is something she had repeated multiple times at one point.
“Is that what you really think, Miss Emma?” Her eyes widened. It was weird that he referred to her on a first-name basis, she was supposed to be his superior after all.
Emma uncrossed her legs now resting her elbows on her knees and putting her face to her hands. She had to seem confident in case this was a trap. “What are you getting at here Smee?”
He gave her a weak smile. “Miss Emma, James and I were good friends. You were not the only one who lost him that day. I wish for James an eternal peace, he tried to correct his mistakes and tried to make a better world.” Smee adjusted himself to mimic Emma’s stance on the couch. They both looked into each other's eyes intently.
“I trust that whatever is said in this room will not leave his room. Isn’t that correct, Emma?” His eyes burned into hers making her speechless. All she could do was give him a nod of affirmation.
“Good. What I’m about to tell you has been sitting in my chest ever since James died. I’ve been considering telling you this because I wasn’t sure if you still wanted to affiliate yourself with the Ratri family. After observing you these past few months, I’ve concluded that you’d be a trustworthy ally to the cause.” He took a deep breath and sat back on the couch, head slightly leaning back.
“I am a part of William Minerva-- your brother’s cause.”
“Wait a second. Do you mean to tell me that you worked under my brother James’ cause? Are there more of you who survived the massacre?” Emma had yet to wrap her head around it. If Smee was a part of James’ plan, he did a good job in hiding it.
“I can’t say who the others are because I do not know if there even are any others. Anyone who I knew who was a part of the cause was killed. I do know that there were others I did not know of.” He nodded his head thinking it over. Emma continued to listen. “Your brother was secretive about the whole thing, so he never told the members who exactly was a part of the cause for safety reasons. I suppose he thought it’d be best to keep the members secretive in case they were caught and tortured for information.”
James definitely was smart, Emma knew that as a fact. He had to be smart and clever in order to take over as head of the Ratris, so what Smee was saying made sense.
“What is the point of telling me this?” There had to be a reason behind it. Emma wanted to clearly know his intentions before letting him in on any information she had.
“I was hoping we could continue James’ work, Emma. I had hoped we could become partners and equals which is why I’ve dropped formalities. I hope that did not offend you.” Looking at his face, Emma could tell he was being serious and she had yet to see any malice behind his words.
“It’s quite alright Smee, but tell me, how would we do this and how do I know I could trust you?”
“Well, I would give you all the information I possibly could about James’ plan; which, may I remind you, is quite a bit. As for how we’d carry out the plan, I was thinking we could get Norman to participate. His intelligence will come in handy.”
This is something she had to think of. If Smee was a spy for Peter, she would definitely be killed without a second thought and Norman might end up being experimented on like a lab rat. Her life would be over and Norman’s would become hell. Emma would not let a mistake of hers affect Norman.
“Say if I were to agree, what would be the benefit of you helping us?”
Smee’s glance dropped to the coffee table.”Emma, I have no malicious intent. I simply want to help James’s little sister escape along with the most intelligent cattle child the farm has ever produced. I’ve seen many atrocities Lambda has to offer and quite frankly, I’m sick of it. I firmly believe both you and Norman could change the world if you two worked together.” He looked into Emma's eyes, “I want the system to come down burning. I want this all to stop.”
He had a fire in his eyes. Smee’s eyes communicated with Emma, they told her that he hated the farm system. His eyes made her believe he was telling the truth, but Emma was still ambivalent.
She sighed slowly, closing her eyes. “Very well. Before I take any action, I need an item of good faith.”
He looked at her confused. “An item of good faith?”
“Yes. I simply need an item that gives me proof that you are who you claim you are.” This would clear his name and would make Emma trust him.
“Oh, then I shall give you this.” Smee rummaged through his coat pocket and pulled out a pen with a checkered print on it. He placed it on the table and slid it to Emma.
Emma reluctantly picked it up, looking at it thoroughly with curiosity. “What is thi--” she cut herself off mid-sentence once she opened the pen. It displayed something holographic.
“That pen is very important Emma. It works like a key and map at the same time. James left this to me, please do not lose it.” Smee explained to her, but she was still left with many questions.
“What do you mean Smee? What exactly does this pen do?” She still looked at the holographic image of an owl that it showed in awe.
“It will show you a map to the secret bunkers James has set up. It is also a key for those bunkers.” Emma closed the pen, putting it in her skirt pocket.
“Interesting. Is this the only pen there is?”
“No, there were more. This is simply the last pen I am in possession of. I have a suspicion that the other pen I had was given to the Gracefield escapees.”
At this information, Emma raised her eyebrows. It would explain how the children disappeared and how they knew where to go; it was because of the pen. Which also meant they were most likely in a bunker at the moment. She would have to ask Norman about the pen; he must know more about it if he indeed planned for the Gracefield children’s escape.
“Alright, you’ve convinced me. I am also in the process of planning for an escape.” She gently brushed hair behind her right ear, looking at Smee’s face for any sign of a changed expression. “You’ve caught me in the early process of one, but I’m sure you’ll be a great help.” Emma gave him a wide smile.
“I reassure you, I do everything in my power to make sure you and Norman escape.” He seemed confident in his abilities to help them escape. Emma appreciated the confidence, it would only help with their chances of success.
“I will talk to Norman as soon as I can. I must warn you though, if you dare try to sell me out, you most likely will not like the outcome.” Emma had never actually threatened someone, but desperate times call for desperate measures.
Smee looked slightly taken aback. “Of course not Emma, it would be foolish of me to even try.”
“Good. We probably shouldn’t talk as though we are friendly, I fear of a slip-up on your part. Refer to me as Miss Ratri and we won’t have any problems.” This was a warning, Emma wanted to take extra precautions, she did not mind being equals to him, but she would not allow him to call her on such friendly terms.
“Very well, I understand.”
“Now back to work Smee. We wouldn’t want anyone wondering where you’ve run off to for so long.” Emma sighed, getting up and opening the door for him.
“Thank you Miss Ratri, I hope you’ll come to me with more information soon.” Smee picked up his clipboard and got up from the couch, making his way to the door Emma opened for him.
“I will Smee. Oh, and leave the clipboard, I’d like to go through it if you don’t mind.” She held her hand out waiting for him to give her the clipboard with Norman’s recent information. Smee handed her the clipboard, gave her one quick nod, and walked out the room. Emma, now with a clipboard in hand, walked to her desk and placed it on it.
She sat down on her chair and stretched in it. She had not realized till now how emotionally exhausting this day was, lots of things happened. Lots of things were racing through her mind and her work was still sitting in front of her on her desk.
Emma would have to fix her schedule around in light of new findings.
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The following day once Emma woke up she went straight to the observation room. She would have a busy few days ahead of her since she was paying a visit to her family. It also meant she’d be leaving Norman alone for a few days. Having Smee watch over gives her some sense of relief, but she would miss Norman dearly.
She arrived at the observation room. Just as every day, the strong smell of coffee greeted her along with the few scientists there for their morning shift. She glanced up to see what Norman was doing before addressing the people in the room.
“Good morning all, I’m here to pick up the list before leaving for business outside of Lambda.” Emma gave them a warm smile. One scientist got up and handed her the list and Emma gave them a quick thank you.
“I will return in a few days. I will see you all later.” Emma waved to them and exited the room so she could say her goodbyes to Norman. She opened the room to Norman’s room where he promptly looked up to see who had entered.
“Good morning Norman!” Her smile had become wide.
Norman returned a soft smile. “Good morning Emma. What brings you here so early?” He put a bookmark in the book he was reading and set it on the only table in his room.
“I’m leaving for a few days Norman. I’ll be heading back to visit and discuss business with my family, I promise I’ll be back soon. No more than a week!” She wanted to reassure and comfort him. She knows that if she were in his shoes, she’d hate for her only friend to leave her.
“Alright. I hope you stay safe Emma. I’ll be waiting here for you.” The expression he made, he looked a little disappointed. Emma wanted to reach out to him, but something stopped her from doing so.
She cleared her throat. “Don’t worry I will. I’ll bring you snacks when I return! I also have something to discuss with you when I return.” This piqued Norman’s interest, but he knew better than to ask further questions here.
“I look forward to your return Emma.” They looked at each other, reading each other’s expressions. Emma was the first to look away, surprisingly to her, it was hard to maintain eye contact with Norman. There was something about him that made her feel shy sometimes. She thought perhaps it was just something that came from the lack of experience with friendships.
Emma gave him one last big smile before making her way to the door.
“Emma!” She looked back at Norman, waiting for his reply. He looked shy, as though he was looking for his next words. “Do you have something of sentimental value on you?”
She was confused, to say the least. “What do you mean Norman?” She slightly tilted her head to the side.
“I just mean… something you carry around or something I could keep while you’re away.” Norman’s hands moved in front of him while he tried to explain what he meant.
“Norman.” She laughed at his gestures. “If you wanted something of mine to remember me you could’ve just said so. Don’t be so stiff with me.” Emma smiled at Norman’s awkwardness and reached into her skirt pocket. She pulled out a pocket watch and handed it to Norman.
“I hope this is good enough. I carry it around every day, but I know if I leave it with you it’ll be in good hands.” She studied Norman. He looked at every engraving on the watch. It was beautiful and antique, things that Emma loved about the pocket watch.
“Thank you, Emma. I promise it’ll be in good hands.” He gently opened the watch, now studying the inside. Emma thought it’d be best to take her leave so she could leave him to his musings.
“I know Norman. I’ll be going now, take care.” Emma smiled at him, giving him a wave. Norman waved back, watch still in hand.
“Helloooo, I’m home!” Emma yelled out, standing at the entrance of her parent’s estate. Her voice echoed across the open room. Her parent’s estate resided in the demon world, it was mainly a house to conduct business so there was rarely anyone actually living in it. Emma had hoped that since she gave word of visiting home, they’d at least welcome her.
A housekeeper walked down the twirling stairs that lead to the entrance. “Good afternoon Miss Emma.” Her smile was short and curt. “I didn’t expect you to arrive so early, I thought you’d arrive this evening. If I’d have known I would’ve been there to collect your luggage outside.”
“No worries! I only have a bag, I don’t plan to stay long. I have responsibilities to return to soon.” Emma waved her hand forward explaining herself. It’s not like she couldn’t carry a simple bag, she wasn’t some weakling.
“Of course Miss Emma, please follow me to your room.” The housekeeper took her bag and led her up the stairs and down the hallway to her room.
“Do you know if my parents will be here soon?” Emma had to ask, if they had no intention of showing up she’d rather leave tomorrow.
“The Missus and Mister informed me that they’d be arriving later tonight to dine with you.”
“Do you only if they are the only ones coming?”
“I don’t know the specifics Miss Emma, but I do know there will be more than just your parents here tonight.” They continued to walk down the hall. Emma always stayed in a new room each time she visited. She suspected it had something to do with the lack of trust of having her own room where she could possibly hide stuff. The reality is, Emma already knows it’d be dumb to hide something valuable in a place that is not under her watch 24/7. So, in her eyes the whole moving rooms every time she visits rule is dumb.
“Wow, you must be very busy today then.” Emma tried making polite conversation. She imagined it must be tough being a housekeeper and suddenly have a bunch of guests show up in an otherwise empty house.
“Do not worry yourself, this is my job.” Another short and curt smile. “Well, here we are Miss Emma. Where you’ll be staying. Do not hesitate to ring me if you need anything.” The housekeeper politely excused herself and left Emma alone.
The room itself is what you’d expect a room at an estate to look like. They all kinda started looking the same after a while. Emma tossed herself onto the bed, not even bothering to unpack. She figured there’s no point in unpacking if she doesn’t even know how long she’d be staying. She had already decided before arriving at the estate that if her parents’ ambiance was off or they treated her without respect, she’d be leaving back to Lambda.
Emma soon drifted off to sleep taking a light nap. She was awakened later by the housekeeper. It seemed to be dark out, a contrast to the light sunny sky when she arrived. She must have been really tired to knock out so quickly.
“Miss Emma, I’ve been informed that your parents will be here within an hour. If you’d like to get ready for dinner, now would be the time.”
“Oh wow, I didn’t expect to take a nap. Thank you for informing me.” The housekeeper left the room with a polite smile. Emma sat up on her bed thinking about all the possible scenarios that could play out at tonight's dinner. She knew the conversation of her work at Lambda would arise as well as the topic of suitors. She really wasn't looking forward to this.
The hour passed by quickly while Emma was getting ready to look presentable for dinner. She soon heard a commotion downstairs, assuming it was coming from the main entrance. That was her cue to get out of her room.
She headed down the hall to where the stairs of the entrance are. That is when she saw her parents along with Peter. Of course, Peter had to tag along. She imagined that he couldn't wait to push Emma during dinner. She was sure he would try to get a reaction out of her or any possible information that she had yet to report to him.
She walked down the stairs with a smile. She made eye contact with Peter which was interrupted by her mother. “Darling Emma~” Her mother was a little extravagant, to say the least. The type of person who loved riches and for people to be beneath her; yet, held an aura of friendliness and was very charismatic. Her father on the other hand, was a simple man of few words and was very secretive. “Emma,” her father nodded at her and made his way to the dining room.
“My dear Emma! How are you! You must tell me all about your time away from home.” There was a glint in her eye. Emma knew her mother well enough to know that she didn’t really care how she was doing, but cared more about what she was doing.
“Hello dear sister.” Peter greeted her out of formality.
“Hello to you both. It’s been a while, mother. I didn’t expect brother Peter to be here. I know he is a busy man.” Emma looked right into his eyes. Her mother grabbed her by the shoulder leading her to the dining room and Peter followed suit.
“I know dear! I also didn’t expect it. But you know how your mother is, I haven’t seen you both in SO long I wanted us all to have a family dinner.” They entered the dining room, her father was already seated at the head of the table. “I especially wanted to hear about you Emma! Peter has told me about your accomplishments, it makes me so proud!”
Her mother continued her excessive blabbering as they sat down and the food was served. “Emma, how goes Lambda.” Her father asked her in a strict tone. It was only the second sentence her father had spoken that night.
“Quite well father. I’ve gained plenty of knowledge and have gotten adjusted to the environment.” Emma recited the sentence without a skip of the beat.
“Oh, Emma! I’ve heard quite a bit from Peter, you’ve apparently been running experiments on a cattle child from Gracefield. 22194 was it?” She wasn’t about to point out that her mother had been in contact with her brother Peter and hadn't made that same effort for her. But, her mother had laid out the bait, but Emma was not about to nibble from it.
“Yes, all of it is quite interesting. You see, he is quite an intelligent cattle child, we want to see if we could replicate that intelligence so that there will be higher quality cattle children.” Emma would definitely not mention how she had been slowing down the experiments at an exponential rate so he wouldn’t receive bad side effects. “I must also keep extra close watch since he is so intelligent, we wouldn’t want another escape success now would we.” She also felt like such a bad friend for saying such things about Norman, but it was for the sake of the facade.
“Of course, Emma! Isn’t he the same cattle child who Peter suspected to help the Gracefield children escape?” Another trap, her mother knew the answer to this already.
“Yes, but I believe it to be all speculation on Peter’s part. I’ve been keeping a very close eye on him for that reason; yet, there has been no connection whatsoever. I even went as far as to make him my friend so he could trust me with information. Sounds to me that brother Peter was suffering from stress and became delusional.” She looked over at Peter, a smug expression smeared on her face while Peter looked like a vein on his forehead was about to pop.
Her mother laughed and her father smiled in amusement. “I must admit, seeing Peter riled up like that is most definitely the highlight of my week.” Her mother continued laughing.
Peter butted into the conversation. “I’ve been wondering about your decision on finding Emma a suitor so quickly.” It was Peter’s turn to look smug at Emma. She was unamused. Emma knew the topic was going to come up, but she thought it’d come up more organically.
Emma’s mother cleared her throat, “Ah yes, that reminds me. There is still more to be discussed on the matter. It’s an idea the family wants to proceed on, but they need Emma there to officially proceed with it.”
“Mother, is it really necessary to look for a suitor so early? I am still young and have a lot more to learn about being a Ratri.”
“The family believes you’re doing a good job, Emma. So do us three.” She motioned to herself, Peter, and Emma’s father. “We think this is the best course of action. Since you’re home, for the next three days you’ll be attending meetings with the family to get used to it all. You will then return to Lambda, continue with experiments while looking for a suitor after your seventeenth birthday. Once you find a suitor you will leave Lambda and return to HQ and work for the family.” Emma couldn’t believe it. It seemed as though her next two years of life were already decided for her.
“At least, that’s what it seems is the likely course of action. Everything isn’t set in stone, but it will be by tomorrow’s meeting that you will attend.” Her mother gave her a wide smile as well as Peter. Her father continued to eat as though this was all old news that was of little importance.
“Very well.” That’s all Emma could say. How would she revolt against the sharks at the moment? It seems as though her escape plan with Norman would have to be sped up.