FPE Impetus AU: Grading

Claire is still standing next to the door despite failing to open it. That display of strength would be something feared by anyone, especially to someone who hasn't witnessed the vi*lence that others are capable of.   *Engel notices how Claire has been acting since she entered the room. Engel keeps a soft smile, deciding to grab some paper and crayons and moving to his table. * Engel: Claire, do you want to draw? Claire: I - I - Engel: I'm sorry if I made you scared. I promise I won't hurt you. Claire: no ... I'm not scared. I was ... I'm fine. *Claire, knowing that she can't exit the room, decided to do what Engel asked and draw with him. She sits at the table, allowing Engel to hand some paper and crayons. For the 1st 20 minutes, they're completely silent until - * Claire: Umm ... Engel - that's your name, right? *Engel nods. * What - what happened to you? Engel: Dr. Alexa just made me a little different. "A little better" according to her. Claire: ... why are you here? Engel: I - My mom sent me -. I - I don't wanna talk about that. please. Claire: oh ... ok. ... How did mom make you "A little better?" Engel: I'm not really sure. I didn't really turn out how she expected, so maybe I didn't get all the benefits that she - Claire: Wait, what do you mean "expected?" Engel: Well ... I was sort of a test run for the main experiment. There were going to be a few errors, but they needed to see what they were to be able to correct them. For me, the hands and tail must have been one of them. *The fact that her mother could do this to someone makes Claire pause for a moment. He didn't seem like he was hurt, but, from her perspective, those changes are permanent. "What would his parents think? What would Oliver/Katie think if she went through that?" ... "They'd probably think it would be cool." Claire thinks. * Engel: Hey - it's ... it's not that bad Claire. Claire: uh. W - Why would you - why would you say that? If anything ... it's kind of cool Engel: I saw it. Saw how sad you were when I said that. There's no need to lie. Claire: I wasn't sad about you. It was just about something else. Why did you say "it's not that bad" exactly? Engel: Well ... Dr. Alexa said she would help fix some my problems. I don't know how, but ... I get brought in for tests nearly every day. I think ... I think I'll get better soon. Claire: o ... okay. I hope so. *10 minutes later. Both Engel and Claire have finished their drawings. Engel's paper has a crudely drawn dinosaur on it. Claire has various flowers, all poorly drawn as well. * Engel: That's a cool drawing Claire. What type of plants are those? Claire: A sunflower, dandelion, and a violet flower. What did you draw? I - I can't really tell what it is. Engel: it ... it was supposed to be a dinosaur. I guess I'm not that good at drawing. Sorry. Claire: That's okay. *...* Claire: Does my mom "help" other people? Engel: Oh ... sure. There's Cerignola, David, Emily, Alsi and Kevin. Claire: How does she "help" them? Engel: Well, Cerignola had dropped by to help with an infection in both her arms. Dr. Alexa had to *Engel considers his words carefully* remove them so she wouldn't d*e.  Claire: That's terrible. Engel: It ... it is. But ... she's better now. She's gone home. Dr. Alexa said they'd accommodate for what she lost. Claire: Why didn't she do the same thing to her? Engel: What do you mean? Claire: Y'know, you had that whole experiment done on you. Why not try it on her first? Maybe it could've saved her arms. Engel: Well ... It ... It's kind of a new thing. By the time the experiments with me started ...  Claire: Maybe we could move onto something else. What about those other guys? Engel: Well, Alsi, Kevin, and Emily basically live here. Claire: n-no. I didn't know about any of that. *"Has mom been avoiding me to spend time with them?" Claire thinks. * Claire: Are those all the people here? Engel: Yeah. Sometimes others visit here from time to time as well though. Claire: ... What do you want to do when you get out of here? Engel: I'd g- I guess back home. But ... I wouldn't mind talking to you more. Maybe I could introduce you to those other guys I mentioned. Claire: NO. no. I - I don't think I wanna keep track of anymore people. Engel: A-alright. What do you wanna do? Claire: Well ... I hang out with Oliver/Katie most of the time. Maybe you could meet them. They know a ton about dinosaurs to. Engel: Cool. Claire: ... hey ... you said you were a "test run," right? Engel: yeah. Claire: ... Who's going next? Engel: ... Well, Dr. Alexa just calls them by this weird acronym, ... I think. F.E.N.. I don't really know what each letter means though. *Click. Dr. Alexa opens the door. * Dr. Alexa: Ready to go Claire? Claire: oh ... alright mom. See you later Engel. Engel: Bye Claire. *Claire and Dr. Alexa walk away from Engel's door as it closes and locks behind them. Their close to the exit when - * Claire: Mom? ... Am I a good daughter? Dr. Alexa: Of course you are. Why would you ask something like that? Claire: No reason. Also, ... could I ... could I visit here more often. Dr. Alexa: Why? Claire: I wanna see Engel get better. Dr. Alexa: Wel- Claire: I also want to see if F.E.N. is okay. I don't want them to turn out ... "wrong" ... like Engel was. Dr. Alexa: *Sighs* We - We'll see.