Please note that this story takes place before turnabout serenade. Enjoy!

25/08/2016 - I know I have abandoned this story, I am never good at anything beyond one-shot. Never completed anything apart from one-shot to be honest. I have just re-read the first 10 chapters and I cringed so much at the character development. I will be editing the chapters from now on and then continue with the story. I have the ending all in my head, the same ending I have since four years ago. I am really keen on finishing this at least. Please bear with me! I am really thankful for all the followers, favourites and reviews. I have never stop reading your reviews!

Chapter 1

It had been exactly eight months, two weeks and twenty-two hours.

Eight months away from the cozy little apartment situated right at the corner of Franklin Road she had rented whilst she was still a student which was conveniently built in between an old English bookshop and the cutest little cupcake bakery which she loved. Exactly two weeks ago from the quiet summer break she had spent with her dearest sister who had taken unpaid leaves to accompany her on her graduation trip across Europe. And twenty-two hours since she submitted the final version of her thesis in the toxicology surveillance of opioids in rat subjects (her findings were reported in a prestigious scientific journal), attained her Master degree in absentia and flew across the Atlantic Ocean to be here; where it all started.

Ema Skye counted her last days as a student with her gloved hands, drawing heavy breaths every second as the rain pattered heavily on the bus stop. Three days ago, her life had taken a drastic turn for what seemed like an eternity. Much to her dismay, she had managed to fail the forensic bar exam (it took them three months to grade her and another month to remark her paper after she marched into their office and demanded a reassessment and then decided that they are full of crap and she needs no one to assess her abilities as a forensic officer). She spent countless months after her finals burrowing her nose in thick leather-bound books, skipping meals and even baths just so she could shove more information into her already intelligent mind. She even applied to the forensic science investigating department in the precinct headquarters in Los Angeles beforehand where her sister used to serve and she was positive that she would land herself a position there not because of Lana's influence but more of her own capabilities. When she received a long distance phone call on Wednesday, she had fully expected to be offered her dream job. Her tone turned cold almost immediately when the officer at the end of the line had to repeat himself twice the dreaded line that would smashed her confidence and hope. "Sorry Miss Skye, we have decided to relocate you to the Criminal Affairs Department as a homicide detective. You are to report under..." The line was cut off abruptly. And she refused to talk to anyone the entire day after that.

Ema pursed her lips and looked up at the sky. The day was cold, dark and bleak but compared to where she comes from, such days are not uncommon. She pushed her coral-coloured luggage closer to her as she shivered underneath her lab coat which hung over her head and draped down her shoulder like a giant raincoat; shielding her from any harmful droplets of acid rain when she ran towards the bus stop. Handy indeed, she thought to herself bitterly. She proceed to remove the lab coat, wringing it dry as much as she can before stuffing it back into her hand-carry. Rubbing her leather gloved hands together absentmindedly to generate warmth, her eyes were fixated towards the busy road across the bus stop on her right. She was not particularly interested in the hold up of the traffic caused by a black Audi R8 and a cab but more towards her mirrored self, staring back at her from the reflective glass.

Smart. If one word could describe Ema, it would be smart. Sophisticated would come close as an easy second. Melancholic, perhaps, as the third. In just nine years, Ema had grown more womanly than she thought she could ever be; a closer resemblance to her elder sister. Her hair was longer, well-kept and tied up in a similar fashion she had nine years ago. They were thrown neatly over her shoulder; gracefully framing her oval-shaped face. What used to be a perky, animated expression was now replaced by a solemn and genuinely sore face. The twinkles in her eyes from her younger days were long lost; only humourless comprehension for science seemed to reflect off the emarald pair. Her brows were always furrowed in such a way that they act as a self-defence mechanism to scare off any potential man who may be interested in striking up a conversation. Her figure, she noticed, was more refined; her limbs longer and more delicate- her legs; nothing short to sexy when paired up with heels, boots or flats. Her choice of clothes varied greatly compared to when she was still in her teens and as much as she disliked it, she had grown out from her cute, bright attires. Now, she is usually spotted dressed in her favourite combination – a blouse and a vest which goes rather well with her brown work pants that sits on her hips perfectly; accentuating her waist even more, a short scarf around her neck, her pink-tinted goggles over her hair and a sparkly white lab coat. Today however, she had decided to dress casually (an ivory summer dress and a white cardigan over a thick cream coat lined with white faux furs, black pair of leggings to complement the pair of brown leathered boots) as she had a flight to catch from Edinburgh to Los Angeles. She had tucked her lab coat into her hand-carry luggage as it has become a habit for her to only fish out whenever she is working to protect her from accidental spills or any hazardous situations she may find herself in.

It was now five o'clock and the clouds loomed even closer together, casting the city in a menacing manner. She found herself staring at her phone more often that she should. Lana is never late, and she had promised to pick her up from the airport about half an hour ago. Ema winced in the cold as another burst of wind and rain howled towards her direction and her mind went into complete chaos. The sound of thousand seeds plummeting hard on the glass window of the bus stop was not easing any of her worries. Is Lana stuck in the traffic? She turned her attention to the island of traffic lights on her right but the little commotion from before had already dissipated and traffic was running smoothly. She scowled anxiously. Has she left her workplace or has she not? Why hasn't she called? Is there any car accident on the way that may delay her trip? Oh my god! Is she personally involved in any car accidents?

Ema could feel dread creeping up her spine as she punched the familiar number into the screen of her phone, her hands shaking with uncertainty. She had been through this situation with her parents before as a child where she waited and waited but no one came to pick her up from school. Eventually someone did come and it was not anyone she knew, and the next thing she know she was standing in an alienated white room where her parents lie in peace with sheets over their bodies...

Stay focus! You're an adult now! Her mind screamed in agony. How she wished for a packet of Snackoo right now. A full minute passed, the storm grew louder in her ears and her eyes momentarily blurred out of focus.

"Come on sis… pick up, pick up!" she mumbled into her phone, her right leg tapping continuously.

The phone started ringing at the end of the line and Ema's heart beat oscillated almost 100 beats per minute whenever she heard a cackle over the line. Another thirty seconds went passed, still no answer. She slapped the phone back into her bag and leaned against the cool glass. Heaving out a sigh, she massaged her shoulders gently to relieve some of the building anxiety.

Subconsciously her hand reached out for the pocket watch she wore, hidden underneath the neck of her cardigan. Her fingers slid around the back, feeling its icy metallic surface. She began to trace in circles the tiny words engraved upon its back; hoping and praying that Lana would eventually pick up her phone. Memories of a particular silhouette came back to her and she shut her eyes briefly, as she tried her best to push away the alarming thoughts out of her mind.

" Scientia vincere tenebras "

(Conquering darkness by Science)

Ema let out a deep sigh as words of wisdom spoken by the man she truly respect echoed in the back of her mind. She had a habit of stroking the golden watch for hours whenever she found herself in agonizing predicaments. It was a gift from her mentor and it helped relieve her tension most of the time. Lana could really be stuck in traffic and couldn't answer the phone right now because she is driving, she told herself over and over again. Debates over Lana's delay began to plague her mind like dangerous ethanol fumes. Ema started to reach deep into her sling bag over her shoulder, her hands constantly searching for something to chew on. When she found nothing but a packet of chewing gums, she threw the peppermint-flavoured candy into her mouth and chewed furiously to distract herself from the upcoming chain of thoughts.

Throwing her head back, she allowed herself a moment of oblivion and hummed herself a tune from her childhood. Thankfully she was all alone in the bus stop. It would be an ugly sight if she was to throw a tantrum now. And then an image of a tall man, the previous owner of the golden pocket watch came to her mind. Ema was so sure that he was the last man she would want to share a bus stop with. He was a role model, a mentor, an achiever and also – a friend. She frowned at the last thought. He had advised her to keep her cool at all times for a clear mind and here she was, drawing out all the possible conclusions without going through any obvious reasons first. Like every other mentor, he was experienced, sharp; with attention for details, disciplined and intelligent – all in all a true devotee to Science. Regrettably, that was not the extent of his personality. A man of such caliber surely has a couple of ill traits his colleagues and disciples had to put up with. To start off, he is rude. Not to mention short-tempered and happened to posses atrocious little habits (he always smell of nicotine and demands for caffeine 5 times a day) that pisses off her to no end. Ema had to put up with countless verbal insults when he first met the man and no one had warned her about it. And to think that she had a crush on him for a whole year after that! It all happened when she had voiced out her ambition to her sister when she was sixteen, stating that she would either pursue a career as a forensic investigator or none at all. Lana who had been a rather supportive sister all the while was rather shock at her sudden proclamation of love for forensic science – or dead man science as she would like to call it. "Even dead men have tales to tell!" That would be Ema's retort every time Lana brought it up. She knew her younger sister's fascination with science and all the intricacies that comes with it but Ema had to convince and re-convince her to see the lights of her arguments before the elder Skye would give in. Lana had then arranged a mentor for Ema and was persistent till the end that he was the right guy for the task. He was a close friend of Lana's from her university days and had willingly said yes to her request of training the younger Skye personally in his area of expertise throughout her university life and promised to offer her some first-hand experiences in this dead man path that she was so keen to walk on. That summer nine years ago, a man in his early thirties rung Ema up personally, ordered her to catch the first flight to Munich and everything shall be arranged for her from there on. Ema had packed only the essentials, planted a kiss on Lana's forehead, hugged Phoenix (and shoved her beloved badge extracted from her bag into his palm) and disappeared through the boarding gates in the airport.

And no one heard much from her since.

In a span of sixteen months in Munich with frequent visits and detours to Paris, England, Italy and some other neighbouring cities, Ema was introduced to the world of forensic science in a variety of disciplines; sometimes through case research, mostly through actual hands-on experiences. She picked up the theories and techniques rather quickly but never once did he praise her. On the first day of her apprenticeship, she was given a whole tray of petri dishes that housed a variety of crawling insects and associated arthropods that are involved in the decomposition of humans and carcasses. Girls of her age would have cringed or even bolted out at this disgusting sight but not Ema Skye. She stood her ground, her eyes were twinkling with eagerness to learn and her hands were jolting down more notes that she can ever hope to fit in her tiny notepad. She was told to identify, characterize and estimate the time of death of various example of homicide cases based on the life cycle of the arthropods, the faunal succession or the order in which insects feeds on the corpses and the influence of odours released during decomposition of the flesh that attract these insects. Ema had to eventually (and willingly) spend a night in the creepy lab and woke up next day, feeling rather surprised when a checkered quilt slipped from her shoulders and a note stuck to her forehead saying, "Meet at 9, sharp.". Upon reading the sticky yellow note, she collected her belongings, rushed through the door and down the corridor towards his officers while adjusting her lab coat hastily; feeling flustered and very late. She remembered receiving a tormenting thirty minutes long lecture from her furious mentor and a very hopeful silence indicating a job well done when she finally handed over her report.

Since then, she had had the opportunity to visit multiple crime scenes with him in-state or overseas, practiced bloodstain pattern analysis and fingerprint comparisons on test subjects and within eleven months, she had already grasped the principles behind rideology, ballistics and firearm identification. Self-defense classes over the weekend were mandatory as well as her mentor insisted that there may be a day where she need to hold her fists to protect herself. He had taken the initiative to enroll her in a university in Edinburgh where he taught as a senior lecturer under the division of forensic medicine. Ema then spent another six years (part-time) undertaking a bachelor degree to qualify for a two years Master degree in forensic science. In between studying and rushing through her assignments, she worked part-time under her mentor; occasionally helping him out in crime scene investigations.

Beep…beep…

The vibrations from her phone snapped her out right away from her reveries. The Steel Samurai ringtone reverberated in the background and Ema immediately reached into her bag, digging around furiously to look for the irritating object. After a few mumbles and cries, she lifted the handset to her ears with a loud 'There you are!' and almost yelped in relief when she heard the voice of her sister at the end of the line.

"Lana, thank heavens! I am standing here waiting for you and was so worried when you didn't pick up my call. I thought –"

"Ema." Her sister cut her off abruptly. " – I couldn't be there to pick you up right now. Stuffs just pop up and I don't know how to explain to you –" Ema's eyes widened in surprise and her lips started to pout in disappointment but made no comments. "- I am in the middle of my – argh –" The sound of something collapsing in the background chimed across the line. " – god damn it, who placed this cr – ARGH –" Another cry and at this point of the conversation, Ema was practically rolling her eyes.

A dead silence followed through right after.

"Erm…hello?"

" – so,", shuffling noise in the background began to lift away the silence. "Where was I?"

"Something about not being able to pick me up?" Ema lifted an eyebrow. "It's cool sis, I can get to the apartment by myself, I'm not sixteen anymore. I can take care of myself all right? I'll just catch a cab - "

"No. Ema, I have send for someone to pick you up and – ahh, I just received a text from him. He has already arrived and is now heading towards your direction."

"Wh-what? Who?" Ema's voice thick with annoyance. "How does he even know how I look like and where to look for?"

Before Lana could reply, a hand gently patted on her shoulder. She shifted to her left and a crisp cool voice greeted her, "Fräulein."

Yes it had been exactly eight months, two weeks and twenty-two hours.

Since her heart last fluttered like this.

Author's notes: Hello all! This is my first fanfic in almost 10 years and I am keen to not let this be my last one. I am hoping to produce an entertaining, packed with mysteries and thrillers and some actual scientific investigations in this Klavier x Ema story. And oh not to worry, there will be tons of Klema scenes after this chapter! This chapter is just the tip of iceberg as I want to shed as much light as possible from when Ema turned 16 until the moment she became a homicide detective to fill in the blank of her absence. I tend to get too descriptive and can't stop myself sometimes. It will be a while until the next chapter is posted as I'll be busy with work and upcoming conventions. Reviews, suggestions and critiques are always welcome.