The wind blowing in the afternoon was harsh, nothing like the alluring spectacle of sunbeams, that ghosted the children's faces during the game of tag. It flowed towards the forest in short intervals, almost in a welcoming matter or perhaps as a gesture to dispel the kids' words so that the caretaker wouldn't snatch them up. Those mentioned kids, four of them to be precise, headed into the green woods, quite enjoying the free time before the sunset.
"So..." Emma was the first one to speak up, before running ahead of the remaining trio and started walking backward in order to get a better view of them while talking. "... do you think mama has identified the targets?"
"Anything is possible-" Norman started briefly but got soon cut off by Ray.
"Yes, she has definitely identified us..." He cleared his throat after seeing his companions' discouraged expressions. "...or at least she undoubtedly knows it's some of the oldest children."
"That quickly?" Emma's once joyful voice was starting to get embossed by concern.
A sigh escaped Y/n's lips. "She has her ways I guess."
"And also..." Norman exchanged glances with Ray before continuing. "...perhaps there is a certain someone or a handful of children that gives her more, detailed information." He said putting a good amount of emphasis on the word 'detailed'.
The leaves shivered, mainly from the wind, but possibly even from the tension that was created and started growing in force once Norman's words were uttered. A new problem, a traitor that is, would definitely be a problematic hindrance. Not only did they provide information for mama for obvious reasons like not getting shipped out, but that person would also without a doubt oppose the idea of attending the escape because of the guilt weighing them down. Or that was at least the conclusion Y/n came to, but she kept it to herself.
"Do you really mean?..." Emma more asked than stated, getting Norman's attention who smiled softly.
"Yes, a traitor." The boy announced.
"Oh no, that's utterly problematic." Emma groaned, but her face returned to a straight expression very soon.
Y/n smiled to herself when getting her words confirmed by someone else.
Problematic indeed, Emma.
"Emma, look out there is a tree branch behind you!" You exclaimed shortly, making the orange-haired swiftly turn around and jump over the piece of a tree before once again turning towards the girl that uttered the warning. "Look Emma, about the traitor, it's not like we won't-"
Emma stopped abruptly, halting Y/n's unfinished sentence. "The traitor thing is so frustrating! I don't want to suspect anyone!" She cried out, scratching her head intensively.
The rest of the children stopped in their tracks, gazes turned away in different directions. Only the wind, having enough courage, was able to speak up while embroidering their bodies with chills. Of course, Emma didn't want to make assumptions, but neither wanted Y/n. On the other hand, she was already putting up aspirations on figuring out which unfortunate child is the quadruple's aiming target, namely the traitor. The sooner they were found, the easier the task of convincing them to lay down their work and switch sides would be.
As on cue, Norman spoke up and made the weight on Y/n shoulders a little lighter. "I have already made arrangements for finding the traitor." His voice sounded flat. "I won't let mama win anymore, that's why I have come to the conclusion that we should..." He took a few steps towards Emma and put a hand on her shoulder, his gaze wide-awake, switched between Y/n and Ray. "... carry out the escape plan ten days from now, November 8th."
Three shocked pairs of eyes turned to Norman, making the boy amused. "Trust me, it will work-"
"Are you dumb?!" Ray exclaimed but corrected himself as soon as he got the back of his head smacked by the book Y/n carried since the morning started. Ray cleared his throat. "I meant... are you crazy?"
The white-haired boy smiled brightly. "As I said Ray, I won't let mama win."
"So you have everything planned out?" Ray asked, only receiving a nonchalant glance accompanied with some limited words.
"Of course."
"There is also something else. Me and Y/n..." Emma cast a glance at Y/n, finding the girl's eyes that sparkled encouragement to continue the sentence. "...were wondering if we should tell Gilda and Don about the truth of this house."
Y/n took the lead from that point. "Gilda and Don are the oldest, apart from us, they should be able to handle the truth without accidentally slipping out essential information to... inappropriate people."
Norman and Ray slowly nodded in unison, gesturing that they would be willing to go along with that idea.
"Then it's settled," Y/n muttered, smiling sadly at her shoes.
...
"Umm, Y/n? I think I'm done."
"Let me see, Yvette." The older girl took the handed paper, full of various exercises that very much resembled those the children of Grace Field had to conquer every day during their daily tests.
Y/n hummed in an impressed manner, something she absorbed from Ray. His personality was really rubbing off on her when spending much time with the raven-haired boy.
"I must say Yvette..." Y/n paused, hunting for the right words but in the end decided to go straight to the point. "I'm very impressed with how quickly you solved all of these tasks and still managed to acquire all the right answers."
"Really?" The little girl looked as shocked as Y/n looked a little earlier that day when getting informed by Norman the escape would take place in 10 days.
"I really mean it, Yvette. Your improvement is amazing."
"Check my paper as well Y/n!" This time Alicia exclaimed, standing up from her seat and running up to Y/n.
"Okay let's sit down first shall we?" The older girl suggested, walking back to the table of the library where Alicia was supposed to sit.
"Let me have a look." Y/n muttered, before speaking up. "I- To be honest I don't have a clue what to say. You all, despite being already fantastic as you are, managed to improve so much as well as increase your scores. I am immensely proud of you all."
The assembled children in the library, sitting at their chosen tables, looked already happily at Y/n, but her words of praise made the childrens' smiles even larger if that was possible. Y/n took care of the children, almost like a farmer takes care of his crops. Making sure that her siblings' scores were statistically growing upward without putting any stress on the kids themselves was as essential as watering plants and letting them grow without any chemical fertilizers. The difference here was while farmers feel proud of themselves for producing such good crops, Y/n didn't really feel that it was her contribution that created these effects on the childrens' scores, rather than her siblings themselves being truly ambitious.
"It's all thanks to you Y/n!" Anna exclaimed softly, making everyone nod in agreement. "You are putting in so much work in writing the stories and teaching us that it's us that should be thanking and praising you."
"Oh no, no no, there is really no need for that..."
"There is!" Lannion shouted out but lowered his voice once Anna shot him a sharp glance. "You are an amazing teacher Y/n... but... are you really okay with teaching us, like aren't we taking too much of your time, or so?"
Y/n sighed through a smile. "Absolutely not! It should be me that has to ask if everyone is okay with me as a teacher and not someone more like... like..."
"Norman!" Thoma exclaimed hastily.
"Exactly! Someone like Norman."
"I don't really see why that is necessary." A voice acknowledged from the entrance of the library.
"Wait... Norman!?" Y/n turned around quickly, facing the door in which the mentioned white-haired boy stood.
"Hello!" He exclaimed shortly while approaching the girl. He then ran his blue hues around the room, taking in every smiling face that was turned to him. "You see Y/n is sometimes much smarter than me-"
Y/n hearing those uttered words quickly cut Norman off by clearing her throat in a rush. "Yeah no, please Norman you overestimate me. How can I-"
But this time, it was the boy's turn to make Y/n halt her sentence earlier than she intended by putting one of his hands on her shoulder. "Enough Y/n." He sighed. "You always tell this to others but I get the impression that you don't really count yourself into this. Well, let me tell you..." Norman glanced sideways at the girl. "Scores don't mirror everything you can and you should know that very well with your, what can be seen as mere 191 points."
"Now," The white-haired's glance traveled to the rest of the assembled kids. "I won't interrupt you anymore." A quick pat on the shoulder was Norman's goodbye, leaving Y/n deep in thought, however, she finally managed to stutter out a sentence accompanied by a nervous laugh.
"W-What about I tell you a story or read a book now? You have worked hard today."
Norman smiled to himself hearing the happy cheering filled with agreement after closing the door of the library. He caught Ray standing across him, his body weight supported on the wall behind.
"Coward." The white-haired chuckled out breathlessly looking at one of his best friends.
"Huh!? What do you mean 'coward'!?" A passive-aggressive tone embossed Ray's sentence making Norman snicker even more.
"I meant you are a coward. Should I look up the word in a dictionary for you?" The white-haired boy muttered his blue eyes gleaming with wit. "I'm sure Y/n has one and maybe this time it won't hit you flat in the face."
"I really can't share anything with you, without you making fun of me huh?" Ray hissed, furrowing his brows. "How do you think you would feel if I laughed at you every time you brought up how Emma is the-"
"Okay Ray, I think I will stop you there." Norman uttered hastily, and began pacing away from the boy but soon stopped in mid-step and turned around finding Ray in the same stance. "I just wanted to say, good luck..."
But as Ray was about to answer and return what seemed like a friendly act to give a stroke of hope, Norman added:
"...coward."
...
The four of the oldest kids approached the library, this time in full squad, in the late afternoon. Before they crossed the threshold to the room, in order to meet two of their siblings, Emma paused the parade. She turned around, facing the remaining trio that looked at her with unhidden curiosity.
"Now's not the time to tell them the truth..." She began in a hushed tone making Y/n nod as she talked about it with the orange-haired right before meeting up with Norman and Ray. "They can call me a liar and I don't care if they hate me afterward because of me tricking them. But..."
"We don't want mom killing them before the demons would do." Y/n finished, earning a nod of approbation from Emma.
"Still... even if that's not the truth, a different issue will be born if Don and Gilda don't believe us." Norman remarked.
Y/n tugged on her lips, before raising her voice once again. "Well, my dear companions..." She ran her hues on those she addressed this to. "... there is no turning back now, this is it, this is the decisive moment."
"Geez are we going out on a battle or something?" Ray scoffed and with that action bought a glare from Y/n.
"Cut it, we are heading in." Norman hissed, but his lips were painted with a sweet smile right after, quite impressing the others by it.
And so, the top quadruple, namely Emma, Y/n, Ray, and Norman, went into the library with the simple task of telling a close version of the truth of the Grace Field House to Don and Gilda. This could be easily compared to the spreading of different religions during humankind's history, where the group of four almost like missionaries had to convince others of their own worldview and the consequences of not escaping their current, so-called, home.
"Thanks for waiting guys!" Norman exclaimed announcing the oldests' arrival.
"So, what did you guys want to talk about?" Don asked filled with pure interest about what this conversation would bring. But he certainly wasn't ready for what would be uttered.
Y/n went over to Emma, enclosing her palms around the girl's slim hand and by that giving the walking sunshine a bit of courage. The orange-haired herself smiled softly at the girl before taking a deep intake of oxygen, beginning the explanation.
Although the truth of the house consisted almost of pure facts, the story erupting from Emma's mouth seemed almost unrealistic. Not because Emma put time into adjusting it, but because it was really an unthinkable scenario. Kids are being sold off, only because as far as they knew, the society outside the walls set up these principles in order to what? Earn money or other material things? As said the story was so bizarre, Don's reaction after its end wasn't a surprise but still a disappointment.
Sigh. He didn't believe us as easily as Ray.
"Human trafficking...?" Don asked rather than ascertained.
"Yeah, all of our siblings are being sold off to bad people." Emma provided confirmation to his words, Y/n still by her side hugging her hand with her own ones.
That set of the stone to roll downhill. Don's reaction consisted at first of a quiet snicker that soon got developed to a loud, almost hysterical laugh.
"But... Don it's true..." You said weakly getting Norman to nod in approbation.
"The walls, the gate, and the fact that the siblings who left never write to us..." The white-haired chimed, his blue eyes gleaming with a determination that didn't die out even for one second.
"Oh come on, stop it guys!" Don exclaimed between laughs. "Now tell me, where comes the punchline? When will you tell me it's a prank."
And that laugh, consisting of pure joy.
Everyone's gazes but Don's were glued to a certain point, keeping it still wondering how much more it would take to convince the boy that currently watched everyone's reactions restlessly.
"Wait... You are not telling me it's actually true...?" Don asked, now ambivalent of his own words.
"It's true." Ray uttered, making Y/n tilt her head slightly to the side in order to prevent anyone from seeing how she scrunched her nose at how fast forward the boy was. Though, it wasn't a personality aspect that she counted as a negative one.
"Wait, wait, wait... hold on. Then what about mom?" Don asked, earning a sorrowful look from Emma.
Y/n gripped the girl's hand tighter by that showing her support for what the orange-haired would utter next. "She is in fact the one selling us to the bad people."
"Oh shut up, don't be ridiculous. There is no way!" Don shouted nervously. "She is so nice and... Oh just take it back Emma!"
"Emma loves this house..." Gilda's once silvery voice was now sounding utterly flat. "...she loves it and she loves mom. There is no reason she would make up something like that and also Don... I thought it was weird..."
The green-haired girl pushed her glasses farther up her nose bridge, using that pause in her monologue to clear her throat as well. "That night when Norman and Emma went to the gate..." She continued not trailing off this time. "Usually when you break the rules you come clean to it and everything returns to normal, but this time... you didn't apologize for it, and on top of that you told me to keep quiet."
Gilda took a deep breath before approaching the sensitive topic again. "Emma you look so serious all the time and Y/n... I have never seen you in a more awful state. You never get top scores like you always used to, not to mention you go around the house like a fly that has already been smashed twice. And you both are disappearing all the time, for Emma I don't even know where while Y/n spends her time with the rest of the children teaching them with more effort than mama."
The breathing exercises Gilda was putting on her didn't seem to really give a positive effect. Her body was shaking along with her eyes filling themselves with tears. Y/n wanted to run up to the girl and give her a tight hug but she knew Gilda wasn't fully done with what she wanted to say. "It made it harder for me to ask about it and..."
And that was the final mid-sentence Gilda managed to utter before Y/n leaped towards her enclosing the girl in a hug, followed by Emma right after.
"We are so sorry Gilda." Emma whispered making it hearable for only those remaining in the hug.
Gilda tilted her head so that her hues, despite the fog on her glasses, could watch the other girls' faces. "Did you see it? Y/n, Emma? Did you see how Conny was sold to the bad people?"
"Yeah, but we didn't make it in time." Emma said, starting another rain of questions.
"Wait, hold on. Does that...? Does that mean Conny...? No, she... She is okay, right? They didn't do anything to her, right?" Don's voice was once again filled with a desperation that increased with every word that left his lips.
Y/n sent a glance towards Ray filled with urgency for him to say something for an answer, but before the raven-haired could even open his mouth, Norman took the lead, but this time, uphill.
"We don't know."
"In that case, we have to escape and help Conny and the others." Don got fueled by a determination that embossed his said words, a nice change indeed, but at what cost?
"Yes we will, and we will escape with everyone." Emma announced, adding to the determination almost like adding wood to a burning fire making it stronger. In this case, it was the children's hearts that burned with the hope of living another day with their beloved family. "Please believe us, help us, and run away with us!"
With that stunningly motivating line, Emma managed not only to fully convince Gilda and Don to help the four oldest but also end the meeting in the library. The two children that got their eyes opened to the half-truth for the first time left the room before the remaining four did in order to prepare dinner.
"Guys, I will go and bring mama for the food, I will meet you in the dining room!" Emma exclaimed, probably happy with how things turned out and with Emma smiling, people like Y/n or Norman got equally amused.
But the positive aura was soon obscured by a realization made by Ray. "You 'don't know' and 'let's save everyone' ." He scoffed in pure wry. "What will be next? Let's escape tomorrow, we won't be caught?" He slammed the library door behind him as he was the last one to leave that room. "You should have just said they died!"
"Ray!"
"No, Y/n you know that's the truth and you can't do anything about it."
The mentioned girl approached the raven-haired closer. "Mourning and saving others have one solution in common." She hissed making Ray quite taken aback.
"Also.. that was the best way to smoothly get them on our side." Norman interrupted not liking where the conversation was heading towards.
"I fully get it, it wouldn't be easy for them to agree to just run off into a world full of demons. But if they are not spies, this lie was too cruel." Ray tried approaching the issue bugging him from another perspective. "Don't give them hope that doesn't exist Norman!"
"Ray, calm down-"
"I'm not finished Y/n." The boy's dark hues landed on the white-haired. "How and when will you tell them the truth? Are you even going to be able to tell them?"
"I'll think about it when the time comes." Norman simply replied, his blue eyes sparkling dangerously. "To mention your words Ray, we still need to assume that they might be the spies."
..
a/n: a muuuuch much much longer chapter this time huh? I know I say this all the time and this phrase might be seen as something monotone but... I really hope you liked this chapter! And while I'm still here, I want to take the time to thank everyone who is voting on this fic! It really means a lot to me!
Apart from that, I want to bring up the phrase I gave Nomran to say, the one about "scores not mirroring what you really can". For everyone currently struggling in school, remember that even if your notes or scores (or whatever you call them) in a subject aren't what people call "good" it doesn't show everything you can. Each and every subject is so wide that you can't possibly have examinations in every field that the subject covers, which means you might be worse at what you are being tested at, but are actually good at other topics the subject touches but aren't brought up on the tests. And speaking from experience, even if you don't find anything in a subject that you are relatively good at, keep learning and putting your time into what seems interesting and fun, because that way it will be only a matter of time before people (may be your teachers, parents or complete strangers on Wattpad for instance) start noticing your potential and praise you for what seemed to be totally hopeless at first.
love you all!
a/n (rewritten): aw that's cute