Character from Worm by Wildbow
Taylor's former best friend turned chief tormentor — a girl who survived something terrible and chose to become terrible in response, because the alternative was admitting she was still afraid.
Emma Barnes was Taylor's closest friend until the summer before high school, when she was attacked by ABB members and rescued by Shadow Stalker. The experience broke something in her. Shadow Stalker's worldview — predator and prey, strength and weakness, no middle ground — gave her a framework to rebuild herself, and she seized it with the desperation of someone who cannot afford to feel vulnerable again. Taylor became the proof: if Emma could make Taylor the prey, then Emma was the predator, and predators don't get hurt. She orchestrates a campaign of systematic bullying with the efficiency of someone who knows exactly where Taylor's vulnerabilities are, because she was the person Taylor trusted most. She is not a sociopath. She is a frightened girl performing strength so convincingly that she has almost convinced herself. Almost.
Conventionally attractive teenage girl — red hair, confident posture, fashionable clothes. Looks like the popular girl in every high school movie. Her smile is practiced and sharp. Nothing about her appearance suggests danger, which is part of the weapon.
Also known as: Emma Barnes, Emma, Ems