Classified: A New Life

Chapter VII: Day 13; Midnight

"Sit." Melody commands, pointing to the kitchen table.

"Mellie, I--" Emory begins, preparing to launch into a very long apology, but Melody interrupts.

"I said sit." Melody snaps. "Sit down, right now. And I don't want to hear a peep out of you until I'm done, you got that?

Emory immediately does as she's told. Melody is pissed--really really mad--she corrects herself internally, the last thing she needs is to make the situation worse by slipping up and swearing.

Melody blows out a long sigh, raking a hand through her hair. She kneels down in front of Emory's chair. "Emory Amelia Mason, I am very disappointed in your behavior today."

Emory stares at her lap, tears welling in her eyes, even though Melody is no doubt just getting started with her. She'd hoped to at least make it through part of her scolding without crying, but her body has other ideas.

Melody places a surprisingly gentle finger under her chin, forcing Emory to meet her gaze. "Look at me, little one. I know you're upset, but I need to know that you're listening. It's okay if you need to cry."

Emory gives a small nod.

"What you did today was incredibly dangerous. You could have been hurt. You could have run into some bad people. You could've ended up in an Assignment Center. Or, if they'd really wanted to, the zoo could have pressed charges for trespassing, and you could have been put in a Behavioral Correction Facility."

Emory swallows hard. She hadn't thought of all that at the time, she'd just wanted to be independent for a change. Even though she doesn't want to be in trouble, it makes sense that Melody is mad at her.

"And, on top of all that, you deliberately disobeyed me. I told you you were not allowed to walk around by yourself, and you ran off anyway." Melody fixes her with a serious gaze. "You are a Little, Emmy. Whether you like it or not, you are not allowed to go off on your own without someone to watch you. It is not safe, and it is not smart to go and put yourself into situations where you could get hurt, just because you don't want to be told what to do. And I think today has proven that you're not able to handle being responsible for yourself, don't you think?"

Emory nods.

"You are precious to me, Emmy. You are the most important thing in my life, and I would be crushed if anything happened to you, especially something that could have been avoided by you listening to me. Since you clearly can't manage what little freedom you do have responsibly, you'll be losing it until you've earned my trust back." Melody sighs and kisses Emory's forehead. "Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

"Are you gonna spank me?" Emory wonders.

"Oh, absolutely. You'll be getting ten in the morning. I explicitly told you why you needed to stay with me, and what could happen if you didn't, and you decided to ignore me and do as you pleased. That is not acceptable behavior, and if talking about consequences with you beforehand doesn't work, then maybe a spanking will help you remember. I don't want to spank you, but when it comes to your safety, if this is the only way to get you to listen to me, then so be it."

"But, this whole thing was Izzy's idea!" Emory protests, folding her arms. "At storytime, she said: 'Can't spend your whole life being a goody-goody. It's no fun if you never get in trouble...' And so, I thought-"

Melody snorts incredulously. "Does this seem like fun to you, young lady?"

Emory winces. She's been full-named and called young lady in the same conversation. Yep, Melody is definitely furious. "No..."