Hermione knocked on the door of Artemis' office gently. "Hello? Artemis?"
The door slid open to reveal Rei Two on the other side. She held what appeared to be a red spear with a bifurcated tip in one hand, and in the other, a saucer and teacup.
"Come in," she said softly. The girl stepped back out of the way, and Hermione entered slowly. The office was fairly expansive and well-furnished, which made sense- Artemis wouldn't have it any other way. There was a small lounge area in the center, complete with reclining seats and couches and a small refrigerator. In the far corner of the room was his desk, complete with standing room for his butler and several conference chairs along the outside. In one of them was Chief of Regulations Satsuki Kiryuin.
"Hermione, sit down," ordered Artemis from his office chair, indicating a seat next to Kiryuin. Hermione reluctantly did as she was told, noticing that everyone had a cup of tea.
"Would you like some?" asked Satsuki.
"Well, I wouldn't want to impose- wait, did you just offer me something?"
"I was under the impression that it was customary to be polite," said Satsuki. "Perhaps customs are different where you come from."
"Well, I was under the impression that blocking doors was customary where you came from," snapped Hermione.
"Ladies, please," insisted Artemis. "Let us keep things civil."
"Civil?" cried Hermione. "She nearly slit our captain's throat!"
"I was only acting upon the authority that Artemis has placed with me. That is what we are here to discuss," Satsuki stated with a deliberate sip of her tea. She tapped a button on her AEGIS and another saucer and cup appeared on the desk in front of her, which she slowly pushed to Hermione's place.
"Miss Kiryuin is right. I have given her free reign to enforce laws as she chooses because her methods have been deemed effective, and because we need a crackdown now more than ever." He pushed a folder across the desk labeled FOR YOUR EYES ONLY. Hermione assumed that meant hers as well. Rei Two took a seat on Hermione's left, leaning her spear-thing against the desk.
"In order for the Illuminati to accomplish our goals, we have gathered a variety of experts to work with us. Regrettably, some with vital skills may pose a threat to our organization's working order," he said, flipping the folder open. A personnel file with attached photograph sat on top of the stack of paper. It was a dignified looking middle-aged man with a beard and spectacles, his hands folded over one another in a resting position. He looked friendly enough to Hermione, but appearances were no way to judge one's character.
"Gendo Ikari," whispered Rei. "Human Resources Chief of Cloning."
"I guess you two are familiar, then?" asked Hermione. Rei nodded.
"Mr. Ikari is an invaluable asset to our organization," explained Artemis. "Without him, we would not have 80% of our work force. However, he is known for keeping his own agenda and there is no reason to believe he is not doing so now. He is our number one priority because he has at his disposal the means to create Reis on his own accord and for his own purposes."
"Like a clone army," supposed Hermione.
"Or worse," said Satsuki.
"Of course, further complicating the matter is the nature of the clones, which are all genetically identical. On Rei's suggestion-" he pointed out Number Two "-we brought the NERV cloning program aboard, and it does fulfill many of our needs. Rei, you are highly intelligent and adaptable to nearly any form of work, and so are your clones. However, tracking them in order to monitor their activity has proven difficult."
"I apologize," whimpered Rei.
"No, no, do not apologize," consoled Artemis. "The program is by and large an irreplaceable benefit to our organization, and I have not regretted following your advice for one moment. You are not at fault."
"Understood," replied the girl.
"This is where Miss Kiryuin and Mrs. Granger come in. Hermione, you are my most trusted Trans-Dimensional Analyst, and you've been with our organization almost as long as I have. That's why I am choosing you for this assignment. You are going to work with a new investigative branch of Regulations under Miss Kiryuin in order to observe and monitor the actions of Mr. Ikari and other suspect individuals."
"So I have to work under… her?"
Satsuki frowned. "Any misgivings you may have about my character are the result of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, I assure you. Your colleagues can vouch for me, as well."
Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Colleagues?"
Rei got up from her seat and opened the door, which allowed the four officers from earlier to barge into the room and take seats in the lounge area.
"I know you have met before, but I do not believe you have been properly introduced," said Satsuki. "These are my Elite Four. Ira Gamagori," the mammoth young man raised his hand gigantic hand, "Hoka Inamuta," the boy with the zipped-up uniform and glasses followed, "Uzu Sanageyama," who acknowledged himself as the one with the bandana, "and Nonon Jakuzure."
"So we're working for Curly now?" whined the venom-tongued girl.
"Yes, Nonon," sighed Satsuki.
"Step outta line once, and I'll make sure Lady Satsuki puts you in your place," hissed Nonon to Hermione.
"Well, this sure seems like a fun little project," said Hermione through gritted teeth.
Artemis stood and directed Rei to open the door. Satsuki gave a bow and left, and her subordinates followed their original leader closely behind. "Your attention to detail makes you ideal for this kind of mission, Hermione. I thank you for your cooperation."
Hermione looked at the open door, then back at Artemis.
"My turn to speak with you privately," she grunted. Artemis nodded and directed Rei to close the door again.
"I assume this is about the Time Vortex experiment?"
"No, it's about the flavor of scones for breakfast this morning. What do you think, Artemis?"
"If it is any consolation to you, Research and Development reviewed your results and deemed it inefficient. We can't enhance our soldiers and have them burn out halfway through a battle. We're reviewing alternatives, such as uniforms with mild Life Fiber integration."
"And I suppose you couldn't tell me about that either? Because no one did."
"I understand that you are angry. I betrayed your trust by selecting you to test both without your permission. At the time, I had no alternative. However, there is one now. Fresh in from Recruitment, she's going straight to R&D. She's from some espionage program- responds really well to all sorts of mutagens, and she can recover in a day flat for more testing. She'll be the guinea pig from here on out."
"Name?"
"Clover somethingorother."
"Like any proper lab rat, don't bother with a proper name," Hermione hissed.
"Hey!" cried Artemis. "She's got one. I just have a lot on my plate right now."
"You sure do," sighed Hermione, getting up and walking to the door. "You sure do."