Emery

Dear Diary

I'm Not Entirely Sure How This Is Supposed To Work, Emery Is Better At This Writing And Recording Thing Than I Am. Why Do They Address This To The Diary? Are You Going To Write Back? I Guess I'll Find Out.

Anyway, Today Was a Good Day For the Hive. We Found Our Way Back To That Stream That Leads From The Surface Orchard Into The Underground. Often A Lot Of Fruit Comes Floating Down There, And Today Was No Exception. Between Us We Lifted Some Apples, A Few Pears And Even Some Plums Out Of The Water. Moving Those Is Going To Be a Project Of Several Days, But That's Fine. It's Nice To Be Busy Again After Mostly Staying In The Hive Over Winter.

Speaking Of Being Busy, Emery Asked To Take Some Of The Plums For Their Own Business, And Given How Much We Managed To Retrieve We Didn't See An Issue With That. But No Sooner Had We Agreed That Then He Was Off, Flying Off Down The Tunnels To More Of The Rat King's Business.

I'm Not Entirely Sure How They Do It. Mama Was Always Too Concerned For Her, And I'm Glad That Got Better, But It Is Still Really Impressive How He Manages To Just Do So Much At Once. Ever Since The Rat King Gave Him That Job Of Collecting Information To Be Passed On To The Writer-Downers, He Has Been All Over The Underground Talking To All Sorts Of Animals And Learning All Sorts Of Things. It Was Her Input That Allowed Enough Of The Tunnels To Be Mapped Out That Some Tunnels Could Be Designated As “Smoke Free”, For The Benefit Of Us And All Other Animals Who Don't Cope Well With The Fire, Whilst Still Having Enough Of It Around That It Gives Light And Warmth. We've Access To All Of The Underground Now, Using These Tunnels.

You Can Always Tell When Emery's Been On Her Fire Safety Exercises Because Her Fur Ends Up Covered In Sand. Mother Was Not Pleased The First Time It Happened, She Doesn't Like Sand. Emery's Learned To Shake That Off Before Actually Landing In The Hive Now, But It Still Ends Up Getting Everywhere. Still, I'm Not Complaining, That Sand Apparently Keeps The Fires From Spreading. Or At Least That's What Emery tells me, But I Believe Them.

I Think That's About All That's On My Mind Right Now. Do You Sign Your Name At The End Of Each Entry? I'll Have To Ask Emery For Clarification.

Yours Faithfully

Everett.

“Thanks again Emery!”

“it's no problem Moose it is good to see you as always if i find more apples and the others have some spare i will bring more to you as i know you like apples and we have many in the hive as there is a lake that runs through the orchard on the surface or at least that's what Mama says is happening and she knows a lot of things so it makes sense so if any more apples show up on that lake that runs through the orchard and we have them spare i will bring them to you.”

And with that you're off, buzzing expertly down the smoke-free tunnels you mapped out for Vincent and the King. You heard the Rat King had a conversation with some spirits, which you think may be a euphemism for him imbibing some alcoholic beverages? Either way, he and the spirits agreed on the proper use of fire and how it could be deployed responsibly (and this makes perfect sense to you, in the course of your and Chiro's experiments you found alcohol to be extremely flammable) so its use was scaled back, and this coincided perfectly with how your fire-mapping plan. Chiro had wanted to call it “fire escapes” as it is an escape from fire, but the two of you eventually figured out that this might be confused with your “fire getaways” that are designated evacuation points in the case of a fire that gets out of hand.

Along with you you're dragging your makeshift satchel, in which is contained a small plum for Vincent. You used to make many trips to deliver bigger plums, but the Count always seemed somewhat bemused by it.

Fluttering down to the entrance of the Lair, you gently knock yourself against the entrance a few times to get their attention, but the bat that answers is not the bat you expected to see?

“Oh, hello Emery” Vesper Costello says.

“Vesper! are you in speaking to the Count? does this mean that you decided to pursue friendship? this is great news! Congratulations on the friendship pursual! i have made many friends and they have made me very happy during my time in the underground, there is Princess Chiro and the Adelie and Moose and Everett and Everlast and Evermore and Every Time We Touch I Get This Feeling and Every Time We Kiss I Swear I Could Fly and Everest and Eventually and they make me very happy so i hope your friendship makes you very happy oh yes i had some to deliver a plum to the Count if you like i can go back and get some more for you if you want.”

“That's alright,” Vesper says with a small laugh. “I'm sure the Count will share.”

You turn several loops in celebration “yes of course! that is what many friends do in the Hive Mama and everyone else we all share what we find and what we stored and we are all very good friends so i think that this will not be a problem.”

Vesper takes your plum and heads inside, as you head away. First, to pick up some cherries. Then to Chiro, who you find poring over an old record.

“hello Chiro i have come to deliver some more cherries for you it is good to see you how are you how is your research going how is the metals.”

Chiro perks up. “Emery! Come in, have a look at this!”

And so you fly inside, dragging the cherries behind you.

For The Attention of His Lowness The Rat King

Report By Supervisor Magnolia, on Emery

Emery continues to do astounding work for the underground. His memory is unparalleled by anyone else, and they could recite to you every currently known tunnel in the Underground and where they connect to. He could probably tell you some unknown ones too.

Between him and Chiro they've managed to make great strides, and he can always be relied on to feedback Chiro's research and findings with an unerring degree of accuracy. They've made a very effective team, the two of them.

Your Lowness may have heard some of the writer-downers complain of Emery. Certainly she could do with perhaps slowing down in her speech to give them a chance to catch up, but it doesn't detract from what he's managed to do. The writer-downers should, to be frank, write faster.

It is my recommendation that promotion be given.

In faithful service

Magnolia