Chapter 5
She Got Us!
彼女は私たちを得た!

      We looked around the library. Well, I stayed in one spot looking at the map.
"This map was published in 2010... hm..." I muttered.

{ What's the world like? Where are we on this map? } My eyes widened, "We don't even know where we are! We don't even know where this house is," I said with a frown.

I had kept my distance from Emma and Norman. I hate that I did, but that's how I reacted to this... this pain? I don't even know what this feeling is...

"The sun comes up from the South, so we're in the Northern Hemisphere. And we have four seasons so somewhere in the Mid-Latitudes," Ray told me.

"But that's all we know," I said with a sigh, leaning on the map.
"There are demons outside. But where? How many?" I then asked myself. I looked up at Ray with worry but he gave me a reassuring (kinda) smile.

I sighed and let my head rest on the map.
I wanted all of this to stop. All this demon stuff. All this horror. All this... pain.

I zoned out for a while until I heard my name get called.
"Ray! Norman! Emma! Y/n!" Mom called out.

I moved from my spot and went ahead before anyone.
We got to Mom and stood next to each other. I was standing next to Gilda, on my right and Emma on my left.
Beside Gilda was Don, next to Emma was-... Norman, then Ray.

"What is it, Mom?" Don asked, giving me a smile before turning to Mom.
"Could I ask you..." she trailed off. Hell, I wasn't even gonna care if she found us out. "To help me with some chores?" she asked with a smile.

×Time Skip×

"This is bad. It means she suspects us, right? Do you think she knows something?" Emma asked with worry.
"Chill out. Think of it from the enemy's point of view," Ray suggested.
"The enemy's point of view?" Emma repeated with confusion.

"It's natural she would pick the oldest, since none of the kids are reacting, of course. Just calm down," I told her, hoping it didn't sound harsh.
"We still have to be on our guard more than ever. But don't worry, she doesn't know about us yet," Norman said with a smile.

"Just don't panic. It's what she wants," I added with a sigh, running my hand through my hair.

"Let's go," Norman said, giving her a smile. Ray and I walked ahead.

×Time Skip×

This is our third day of doing chores.
It's getting really annoying and boring.
Organizing the pantry.
Inspecting the spare linen.
Cleaning the vacant rooms.

I was sweeping when-
"Damn it! I was to play!" Don exclaimed, holding up his broom.

I chuckled slightly.
"You'll get to play soon, Don," I said. He looked at me, "B-But, why is it just us?! Is this some sort of punishment?! Did we do something wrong?" he cried.

I felt sorry, it was mostly my fault he and Gilda were in this situation.

"Don, I'm going to need your help with this," Gilda said, grabbing his hand to lead him away.
"What?" he asked.
"Come on!" she told him.

He turned back to me,
"Bye, Y/n!" he said before running with Gilda.
"Bye," I replied with a smile.

"We have to do something about that or escaping will be impossible," Norman said with a sweat drop.

"But how? I've searched all over my body and there aren't any scares that indicate something was implanted," Emma asked.
"And there's nothing in our clothes or shoes. Ray? Y/n?" he said.

"Based on humankind's existing technology, it's a tracking device that uses radio waves. But those require batteries inside, and they don't last long. Y/n?" Ray said. I perked up from leaning on the broom.

"Well, um, something ultra small that wouldn't leave a scar, with batteries would last over ten years... In 2015, they would exist only in fiction," I continued.
"Meaning?"

"It's gonna be difficult to predict the system of parts, identify the location clearly, and figure out how to break it. We might as well give up if it's technology from the demons," I said, standing up straight.

"True. It's most likely that they're using specific technology from the demons," Norman muttered, his hand on his chin.
"So... checkmate?" Emma asked.
I smirked, "Checkmate," I said which made her groan.

"That's terrible!" she exclaimed,
"It would be nice if we had an X-Ray," Ray said. Heh, puns.
"No. Even if we can't figure out the mechanism, we can anticipate things. If we think there should be a way," Norman said.

Mom's alone, so as long as we outmaneuver her–even if that's considerably risky–we can all attempt to escape. Think. What would the enemy do? How would I logically control us? What kind of tracking device would I use, and where would I implant it? Where...?

"We need more information!" Norman groaned, laying his head on the wall.
"Exactly," Emma said.
I walked over to Norman and laid my hand on his shoulder, "It'll be okay," I said with a smile.

{ Although, we still have to deal with the tracking devices. Where are they? How do we break them? }

"I wonder if she's so confident. Because she knew we would get stuck," Norman said, leaving my touch.
"So... doesn't it seem odd? Time is limited. Her plan should be to make us impatient so that we reveal our plans. But time is also limited for Mom. I can't quite put my finger on it. But it's a roundabout strategy. Like she's being way too soft," Norman said.

{ So... does this mean she... actually cares for us? In some sort of twisted way... }

"There's no urgency to find her targets?" Ray asked.
"Yup. The tracker isn't conclusive. Even if she suspects us... it's only a suspicion. She has to remain cautious. Mom should want to identify and deal with the target as soon as possible," Norman responded.

{ But why do I feel something is off? What exactly is Mom thinking? }

She is our mother, but she's also our teacher. She taught us. She raised us.
"Something's bothering me. I hope I'm just worrying too much," Norman muttered.

Mom... Mom is more...

"Hey, don't slack off you guys!" Don said from behind us. I jumped, falling back. Unfortunately, I was at the top of the stairs.
"Y/n!" Gilda exclaimed, scrambling up to either catch me or grab me.

Luckily, I was caught in time.
"Are you okay, Y/n?" I heard Norman ask.
"Yeah, Don just startled me," I said, rubbing my neck sheepishly, only to realize Norman was holding onto me.

Ray had grabbed my hand in an attempt to catch me, Norman was fast enough to catch me fully, and Emma was about to help but they got there before her.

"I'm so sorry, Y/n!" Don exclaimed. I tried to look at him but my eyes were focused on Norman's face, "I-It's okay!" I squeaked out. Ray let go of my hand and Norman steadied me.
Then I remembered, there was no hope for him to like me.

I got out of his arms and gave Don a smile,
"Let's hurry and finish this up!" I said.

×Time Skip×

I sighed as I sat on my bed, I couldn't fall asleep.

I couldn't stop thinking!
Was I gonna die?
Was Emma, Norman, or Ray, or anyone else gonna die?
Will we be able to save everyone?

I should focus on something else.
Why doesn't Norman like me?
Ugh! Why that!

Maybe it's my hair...
No, stop! If he doesn't like me, I should deal with it.

Is my face too–
I give up!
He won't like me!

I felt a tear roll down my face. God, I hate this. Crying over a boy, how pathetic.

Simply... pathetic.
I hid my face in my knees as I cried uncontrollably.
The sign of how I was crying told me there was something else I was crying about.

×Time Skip×

We all woke up to find a woman and a baby in the living room.
"Let me introduce her... This is your newest little sister, Carol. And this is sister Krone. She's here to help me with my duties," Mom said.

The woman held a suitcase in her hand while the baby was wrapped in a blanket.
{ An... adult... She got an an adult to help her. We're also getting a baby sooner than usual }

We were concerned about the tracker because she showed it to us. And we also were worried about revealing our plan. We were preoccupied with those two things... And never even thought of another adult coming.
Those chores. The truth behind monitoring us...
Was all just to prepare and buy time for this!

We didn't reveal anything. We saw through her bluff. Both Norman and Ray... read Mom's moves. But even then, Mom went further. She moved us like pawns and drove us into a corner.

Flashback

"Checkmate~" Mom said as she beat us again.

"What?!" Emma exclaimed.
"Mom's too good," I muttered, amazed at how she beat us.
"It's like you know everything we're thinking," Norman said, in thought. Ray looked tired of getting beaten.

"Hee hee (Michael Jackson-!) Of course I do. Because I'm your Mom," she said.

Flashback End

"Sister Krone, please introduce yourself," Mom told her.
Krone stepped forward.
"Yes. I will be living here with all of you starting today. It's nice to meet you," she said with a smile.

"And this is your newest little sister, Carol," Mom repeated, looking at the baby who know yawned. We got another sibling.
"And this is sister Krone."

A demon's minion.
Mom's subordinate?
A second set of eyes watching us.
Another person in the way.
Another obstacle.

"We have 16 kids who are under three years old," Norman whispered.
"And Mom's not the only enemy anymore," Ray replied.
"It's even more difficult to escape..." I muttered.

怖かったから死ぬと思った

10/29/19
Word Count- 1705