"Fascinating!" Emerick exclaimed. It was probably the only word he'd used ever since he'd witnessed Jemma's transformation. He'd certainly said it a lot in any case. Watching her in action, it was no wonder not even Jacoby had noticed her sooner.
Other than a few slips in character when she was nervous, Jemma had been able to mimic Liron so completely that on the walk to the work shed there were a few moments Emerick was left to doubt whether the Liron he was holding was genuinely the real one. It wasn't until they had arrived at the shop that Jemma finally revealed her true self. Emerick had been gawking ever since.
Trixie was undeniably the only woman he really had eyes for, and Emerick doubted that fact would change, however he really had never seen a lady quite like Jemma. Titus had revealed that she was part slime, which played a crucial role in her ability to mold herself into other forms, but it also made her resting state round and bouncy in a painfully desirable way.
"Stare a little harder," Liron remarked dryly. "She might just vanish if you don't."
"Sarcasm doesn't suit you," Emerick replied.
His eyes shifted back to Jemma's arm which she had morphed to exhibit strips of skin from a number of other races in a spectrum of sensitivity. When Titus used his products on said arm, she was able to simulate, process, and analyze the effect of the contents on each sample. He still couldn't completely believe what she was capable of, or what she must've went through to attain such abilities. Whatever her experiences had been, apparently they'd been traumatic enough she had very few memories prior to the day she met Trixie and her family.
"You are making her uncomfortable," Liron pressed. "She is a lady, I hope you realize."
"Please forgive me Jemma," Emerick ignored Liron and spoke directly to the slime girl. She flinched at the sound of his voice.
"I don't understand the need to," She replied, avoiding eye contact. He could tell she was, indeed, uncomfortable.
"No, staring at you was rather rude on my part," Emerick shook his head. "As amazing as you are, it's no excuse for making you uncomfortable. Please, forgive my poor manners."
"It would be easier to do so if you would make an effort to procure suitable clothe to remedy the excessive bareness of your upper torso," she blurted. Immediately, the pale grey skin of her entire body turned pink and with a girlish squeal she covered her face and turned away. So, she had a habit of blurting her thoughts when stressed enough. That was good to know.
"She makes a fine point," Esmyria, who had watched the proceedings in thoughtful silence, finally spoke. "If you were truly apologetic, and if you truly wished to express proper manners, you would look the part. It's difficult to believe your apology is in anyway sincere when you rarely make the effort to dress appropriately… if at all."
"Excuse you! I dress up when I go out!" Emerick exclaimed. "Is it a crime to want to feel comfortable in my own home?"
"It is not just your home anymore," Esmyria placed on her hands on her hips. "As you may recall, you sighed the title to Trixie under the condition you could remain here."
"Trixie doesn't mind how I dress," Emerick scoffed.
"She may not, but everyone else does," Esmyria replied. "And I could also point out you have guests at present, or have you forgotten?"
"How could I?" Emerick pursed his lips. "The four of you make a point to interrupt every aspect of my life!"
He looked at her to see if his point had been made, only to discover she was not where she had been. She had moved over to Jemma to observe her arm and the results of the latest test. She was also apparently feigning deafness to Emerick and his comment. Good to know she cared so much about what he had to say.
"The work you do is genuinely incredible my dears," She was saying to Titus and Jemma. "I look forward to seeing more of what you have to offer."
"You're too kind, your majesty," Titus said with an awkward smile as he bashfully rubbed the back of his neck. His eyes flicked nervously to Emerick for a moment before returning to the queen.
"What have I said about this 'your majesty' nonsense?" Esmyria scolded.
"Were you serious about that?" Titus look startled and somewhat embarrassed for some reason.
"Deadly serious," Esmyria replied. "And this applies to you as well Jemma, and to Liron. To all of you children in fact."
"What?" Jemma cocked her head.
"As I told Titus, I would prefer if you did not refer to me as "queen' or 'her majesty' or any of that nonsense. That is for strangers and mere acquaintances. You were adopted by my son, which makes you all family. At the very least, you will call me Esmyria, though I would prefer 'grandmother' if you are comfortable using it."
"I just don't know if I can do that your-"
"Don't you dare say it," Esmyria wagged her finger at him. "Now, your grandmother does have a few thoughts she would like to share."
"Dragon or not, you're appearance is far too youthful for me to acknowledge you in a way that disparages you as 'elderly,'" Jemma frowned.
"Well then, call me 'mother' if you prefer little one," Esmyria smiled. "And please stop interrupting dear. I'm fully aware of the fact it will take some time to adjust to such names. In the meantime, I really would like to discuss the business at hand."
"Is there something wrong with the samples we tested today?" Titus asked anxiously. It seemed it had finally occurred to him that the praise Esmyria had been heaping on him was shadowed.
"Nothing of the sort," Esmyria replied calmly. Composed as she was, Emerick could clearly see the gleam in her eyes. As ever, Esmyria knew how to exercise her power and presence to manipulate any situation in her favor. He wondered what she was up to this time.
"Was the smell bad? Is the bottle too ugly?" Titus continued, fussing over what could possibly be wrong.
"My dear, the perfumes are just fine, and you can hardly expect your manufacturing materials to look particularly special," Esmyria placed a hand on his shoulder to calm him. "No, I just had an idea I wanted to run by you."
"Of course," Titus perked immediately. "What is it?"
"Do you think you could apply that odor eliminating quality your perfumes have to a cleaner? Preferably one that can remove tough stains and harmful parasites?" She questioned.
All at once, Titus became a torrent of ingredients, equations, and hypotheses. As Jemma and Esmyria added to his brainstorming Emerick watched with a mixture of exasperation and awe. Not for the first time, he marveled at Esmyria's cunning and stratagem.
Most were fooled by appearances, and Esmyria played her part to perfection. None the less Emerick knew just how calculating and devious she actually was. There were times that he doubted if she every truly improvised, or if she needed to so great was her foresight and manipulative technique.
Arnwald often admitted that he would've never ascended to his throne without Esmyria. Her intelligence, wisdom, and guidance coupled with his strength and passion were what had helped him persevere. True, his strength and passion were what endeared him to the people, particularly the commoners, but he was more than happy to acknowledge those traits alone wouldn't have been enough to take him past his former role as champion knight. Most laughed those words off as an affectionate joke from a doting husband, but the few who truly knew Esmyria for who she was and what she could do realized it was the truth.
"Why can't women ever just state what they want?" Liron sighed. "What is she after anyway? It's obvious she wants something."
"If I had to guess, I would assume it involves the condition of the palace," Emerick replied. "And I could point out that you are often just as round-about in your schemes as well."
"I'm a lowly street rat and an ingenious marketer. It's only expected that I twist the truth to benefit myself and those I care about," Liron replied. "She is a figure head, and a lady of grace and esteem."
"She's a politician," Emerick said flatly.
"Fair point," Liron conceded.
They stood in awkward silence for a few moments as their companions continued their confusing chatter.
"You know," Liron spoke up after a while. "They're pretty caught up in their discussion. We could probably get away with slipping out…"
"Do you want me away from Jemma that badly?" Emerick questioned with a teasing grin.
The reproachful look the little fox gave him caused him to chuckle. He'd been trying to make a joke, but clearly his guess had been more correct than he'd anticipated. He wondered why Liron was so protective of Jemma. He wondered if Liron himself knew the answer.
"Well, I'm going," Liron announced. "With or without you." So saying, he broke eye contact with Emerick. "It's going to be hours before they get to a topic relevant to my involvement and I have no interest in waiting."
Emerick considered him quietly. Normally, Liron didn't mind hanging around, even for the dryer topics, yet today he was in just as big a hurry to leave himself. Emerick suspected Jemma was the root cause of that as well. Perhaps he'd ask Rathus or Trixie about it later.
He was still trying to decide whether or not he wanted to risk leaving and incurring Esmyria's wrath when he noticed Trixie—fresh out of training—walking past on the trail up to the manor. She was glistening with sweat, her face was blotched odd colors from exertion, and her hair was all over the place, but in that moment she was the most beautiful thing in the world. Better yet, none of his other mothers were anywhere to be seen.
"Hey there beautiful," he said with a sultry smirk as he sauntered up to her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. Sparks erupted through his skin on contact, and he worried he might cream himself before they so much as kissed. She would never let him hear the end of it if that happened.
"Hey yourself," She rolled her eyes, but he could tell from her smile that she was just as happy to see him. "By the way, is that a snake in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?"
"It's my puppy dog tail," Emerick replied with a wink. "It wags when I'm happy and everything."
"Well pup, I hope you like a good chase," Trixie wiggled her eyebrows at him. "Fetch boy."
She dashed off without another word, tail waving him after her in a provocative manner. With a frustrated chuckle, Emerick shook his head and took off in pursuit. No way was he going to miss this opportunity.