Original Commentary

It's hard to tell of Sofia genuinely likes to be mean to Emily or if she's being meant o her out of necessity (ie. to make her go away). She doesn't particularly like Emily and sees her more as a meal ticket than a friend or companion. I'm sure Emily was the kind of kid in elementary school that would give people her lunch money to make them like her. In one sense that makes me feel a bit bad for her, but in another sense I want to say "She's how old and she's still doing that?". Hopefully even though it's still not too great, she understands that she's being used and doesn't mind and, in fact, feels that the information she gets is worth it. Besides, she doesn't strike me as the type to stick around in a situation where she wasn't getting anything in return - Isabel

Modern Commentary
It's a thought bubble. I've always considered them a bit of a cheat, but it's always best to be immediately clear when a character is being deceptive. Otherwise, when all you have is what people say, it's hard to make sure everybody understands that Sofia is putting Emily on - Terrence