[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]a soft, tinkering sort of laugh escapes - easy as a breeze.

"oh, i don't know if i'd say i had much to do with that! it was all thanks to those gathered and palkia."

her free hand waves it idly from the air. she is careful to avoid puncturing little holes into the fabric of space around them, though one or two manage to slip through the cracks. she repairs them as quickly as they come all the same.

and her smile widens just a tad, slipping through fondness at the mention of tapu lele. it's no longer a sore subject - the wounds have long since healed... even her mist has slowly eroded away.

"i'm glad you're both doing well. you'll come around more in the future, won't you?"

both are always welcome, even if they might not want to be holed up in a lab all day.

she leads him, then, toward her desk and the plush chairs set up in front of it. she takes her own chair, still adorned with her lab coat snuggly wrapped around the back, before gesturing for him to take one of the plush seats.

"so, i've actually begun a new avatar project, and i wanted to ask if you would be willing to be my first subject - would that be alright?"

a beat passes. she doesn't allow space to permeate much before her voice cuts through once more.

"we'd be working on biological changes to your body while also exploring powers and weaknesses too."

John Sullivan

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]she accepts the concept of trying with a brighter smile, as if it's all the confirmation she needed to hear.

"no pressure - i know you're busy as of late!"

he is, after all, one of the foremost healers in their midst - to clog up his time with idle chitchat to satisfy her own loneliness would be a disservice to him in the end.

and really, he has no problem volunteering for assisting both Eva Morales and herself whenever they need it. for that, she swears they are eternally grateful.

"well, mostly questions, procuring new samples, and a demonstration of your current power level would suffice."

she needs data to study, information to fill in gaps where actions fail... and the samples, themselves, are for tracking energy levels against the biological makeup of the mortal body. without one, the others would falter.

"do you have a preference on where you'd like to start, too? we can take it slow."

John Sullivan

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]she understands, in a way, the urge to visit despite a busy schedule. whether it's the fear of missing out on important happenings or simply combating loneliness, she can see the appeal all the same. it's why her head bobs into a nod and a soft "okay," escapes her lips.

and at the mention of wanting to proceed with samples, she rises from her chair.

"right - i'll gather the supplies."

her smile is kind, though mildly distracted as she goes over a mental checklist of everything required.

"be right back."

the alchemist drifts toward a different part of her lab, then, and collects each small piece of medical supplies to properly conduct sample collection. petri dishes, gauze, syringes, swabs, alcohol pads, tourniquets, and more are gathered up in her arms and brought back toward him on a small stainless steel tray.

"we'll start with blood first to check energy levels, then we'll do a quick cheek swab for genetic analysis."

the tray makes a soft, barely noticeable clink against the desk when she lays it flat.

"are you ready?"

John Sullivan

[attr="class","illeana"]

[attr="class","illeana b"]

[attr="class","illeana i"]a hum escapes. his energy levels are low?

"your infinity energy levels are low? or - wait, your actual human energy levels?"

she had been focused on the bond, but the weight of divinity on the body and the toll it exacts always seems to escape her in the grand scheme of things. she flushes a slight pink in the ears with hot embarrassment.

his arm extends toward her, then, and she refocuses enough to begin prepping the area of his arm. a tourniquet is tied around his bicep and after she swipes an alcohol pad over the area to sterilize it, she unwraps a fresh syringe from its package and connects it to a small tube fed into a vial.

"okay, you'll feel a pinch..."

and she slides the needle into his vein. as blood begins to steadily trickle through the tube into the vial, she lets out a little chuckle.

"no, it's definitely not very chatty. it's more like - well, how should i put this? a silent observer, maybe?"

palkia feels detached, sometimes, when it's out and about. there's a strong connection between them, surely, but they feel disconnected from the rest of the universe entirely sometimes. she can't quite put her finger on it, though.

"is tapu lele chatty with you?"

John Sullivan