User blog:Metool Bard/Fanfiction: A Case Study in Empathy

Ever notice how Leni and Lisa are polar opposites, both intellecutally and emotionally? I have. And part of this new story will be exploring that dynamic, though it's mainly focused on the Louds' gifted prodigy, Lisa. Not much more to say, other than here is:

A Case Study in Empathy
Eighth of April, 8:00 PM.

This recording will not follow the typical format of my audio logs, nor will it be filed with my scientific records. I am making this recording as a form of self-reflection due to the troublesome events that have transpired today. I understand that this practice is highly atypical of me, but given the circumstances, I feel that it is necessary. Allow me to elucidate.

It happened at around three o’clock this afternoon. It was a typical day in our humble abode. I was in the living room, testing out my new adhesive formula to see how well it would be able to withstand extreme temperatures. Our parental units were there as well, partaking in some leisurely televisual enjoyment. Though on a side note, I have no idea what enjoyment anyone could get out of watching humans fall out of aquatic vehicles. But, I digress.

I had just finished my testing, and I was about to clean up my equipment and return to the lab when my second eldest sister Leni suddenly burst through the door. One look at her general demeanor, and I could tell that something was amiss. Usually when Leni returns from her excursions at the Royal Woods Mall, she is carrying with her a proverbial truckload of bags filled with all of the items she saw fit to purchase that day. That was not the case this time. She didn’t even have one bag on her person, apart from her purse. What’s more, she looked incredibly hysterical, as though an arachnid was perpetually following her. But most curious of all is when she noticed me. Her face reflected complete confusion, and she began babbling incoherently. From what I could gather from her ramblings, it was as though she didn’t expect to see me there.

Mother and Father noticed that something was wrong as well. They deactivated the television and asked Leni why she was in such a state. After Leni had calmed down, she offered her explanation. During her shopping spree, she had received a phone call from an anonymous source. Said source told her in no uncertain terms that he had abducted me, and he was holding me for ransom. Leni said she paid part of the ransom as instructed, even though her daily allowance was not going to cover such an expense. For the record, I had not left the house the entire day. Already, I had a working hypothesis as to what happened.

Some charlatan most likely saw me at one of my lectures, and given my high intellectual prowess for such a young age, he believed my family to be well-off. With this in mind, he looked up the phone numbers of my family, called Leni (I can only speculate as to why he chose her and not my parental units, but that’s neither here nor there), and fabricated a story about kidnapping me so that he could coerce money out of us. And sadly, poor Leni bought into his charade, proverbial hook, line, and sinker.

I restated my hypothesis to my parental units, concluding with, in retrospect, an unfortunate phrase. I said that I would not expect anything different from Leni. Now, at the time, I had no idea that what I said was wrong in any way. But despite that, my parental units gave me a disapproving look, while Leni hung her head in shame. Mother told Father to take Leni to the authorities so that they could hopefully sort this out. In the meantime, she took me aside to give me a disciplinary lecture on what she perceived to be inappropriate behavior, or as she put it, “have a little chat.”

I must reiterate that at the time, I was perplexed by this harsh reaction. Mother told me that while she did not approve of Leni’s actions, my commentary was out of line. I explained my confusion to Mother, stating that I had said nothing inaccurate. After all, she knows as well as I do that Leni…

Hmm, what’s a delicate was to put this? Her intelligence quotient is not as high as it could be. That’ll have to do.

Anyway, due to that particular characteristic of hers, it wouldn’t be difficult to imagine her falling for some con artist’s scheme. But my explanation was apparently inadequate. Mother asked me to put myself in Leni’s position and try to understand how she felt. I didn’t comprehend why such a thought exercise would be necessary. I know my siblings quite well. I knew why Leni acted the way she did.

Or at least, I thought I knew. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

Despite my lack of understanding, I agreed that I would apologize to Leni once she returned home. However, this was only because I was threatened with losing access to my materials should I not comply with this request; in layman’s terms, I would be grounded. An hour passed, and Father returned home with Leni. He said that the alleged “kidnappers” would be charged with petty larceny, and that bringing them to justice was just a matter of tracking them down. Still, I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of pity towards Leni’s predicament. I was thus inclined to extend my apology to her.

But before I could say anything, Leni spoke. She said, and I quote:

“You don’t need to say anything, Lisa. I get it. I lost all my money because I’m a big, dumb idiot.”

That caught me off-guard. Leni’s cognitive faculties might not be the sharpest in the world, but one thing I do know about her is that she usually finds a way to keep in good spirits. She knows her flaws, and she strives to overcome them. So to hear such vile self-deprecation come out of her mouth was, I confess, most unsettling. Painful, even. And I was much less prepared for what she said next. Again, I quote Leni:

“But you know what? I don’t care. I’d rather be the biggest, dumbest idiot in the world than risk losing you.”

The next thing I knew, Leni had pulled me into a tight embrace, sobbing and blubbering uncontrollably. She kept saying over and over how she was afraid she’d never see me again; how she didn’t know what she’d do if anything happened to me; how much she loves me and the rest of our family. I say this without any form of malice, mind you. Because at that very moment, I had stumbled across an epiphany. While such an occurrence is usually a joyous occasion, it wasn’t so in this scenario.

This is why Mother was so disappointed in my behavior. Leni’s actions had nothing to do with her cognitive faculties. She acted out of fear. It was reckless of her to give in to a stranger’s demands, certainly, but I have to ask myself. Would I have acted any differently? I’d like to say “yes,” but can I truly say that with confidence? Fear is an instinctual reaction to a perceived threat, and humanity has not evolved beyond that. Ergo, even the most skeptical mind can fall prey to emotional manipulation.

Now, I’m usually not one to display human emotions. Such things have no place in science. But once I had the context behind Leni’s actions, it was just too much for me to bear. She was worried about losing me, and all I could think to do was chastise her for being a gullible rube. That realization was perhaps one the most mortifying experience in my four years of existence, if not the most mortifying.

Even now, as I record this, I-I still feel deep pangs of remorse. How could I have been so callous? Why did I presume to know what Leni was thinking? I-it certainly wasn’t my intention to demean her. I-I just…  I didn’t…  I…

I-I need a minute to collect myself. Excuse me.

…

Okay. I-I’m okay now.

Anyway, I did end up apologizing to Leni. In hindsight, I apologized more profusely than was necessary. Both of us sat there, holding each other and weeping heavily until our tear ducts ceased their function. I’m happy to report that Leni has forgiven me for my transgressions. She truly is a caring, empathetic, considerate individual. Or in more colloquial terms, a sweetheart.

I’m not like that. I value facts over feelings. But just because I don’t display my emotions prominently doesn’t mean I don’t have any. It certainly doesn’t mean that I’m incapable of empathizing with my fellow man. All it means is that I have a very plainspoken method of speech along with a lack of social awareness. Perhaps this will teach me to consider how my words will affect others before speaking my mind. At the very least, I will have this anecdotal recording as a reminder.

I don’t condone what Leni did, nor should I. What’s more, I hope this experience will teach her to exercise more caution should this scenario play out again. However, on an emotional level, I’m grateful to have a sibling who would go to such lengths to protect me. And just like her, I love and cherish each and every member of this family, even if I don’t show it that frequently.

This is Lisa Loud, signing off.

…

Oh, and just as a quick addendum. Lola, there’s a high probability you’re listening to this, since it is your wont to go through our confidential records, aka private diaries. I don’t know how you will react to this, but understand that neither I nor Leni have any desire to experience any further embarrassment from these events. As such, I would highly appreciate it if you did not breathe a word of this to anyone else. Thank you.