golds silently watch the going-ons between PENELOPE LIVY , ollie morales , and MATIAS SILPH , but she thinks little of the petty squabbling. it's more of a welcome monotony than she realizes at first, though she can't help but imagine what Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki might have to say about all of it. 

Melody Miro and her eccentric tics are equally normal as they are frustrating, but freya finds little difficulty holding restraint against a retort about her hurt ankle. the words die to flashes at the forefront of her vision - bodies in the surf, the waters dark with storm and broken homes.

but a brow arches at Remiel Calcifet 's reprimanding stare. something scratches at her insides, threatening to bare her teeth, but she turns her head to the side, eyes softening when they catch the head professor's at her side. 

"managing," she says, just as lowly, and her attention turns in tandem with illeana reyes 's at news of John Sullivan 's status.

"i'm assuming our head champion knows this information because we already have league resources dedicated to finding doug."

AQUA ASSEMBLY

☉

It all seemed so small… the real world. Full of life, but nothing compared to the empty void; So endless. Still, a vast emptiness remained ever-present and suffocating at times.

Eva had always been adaptable, and this would be no different. A healthy degree of fear keeps her grounded now, along with a few key people. Her absence left a void not only in the halls of the lab, but in her confidence. Being benched at such an important time made her despise her human limitations, but it is her innate humanity that makes her who she is. Not once had she ever been nervous for an AQUA meeting, but now the Butterfree flutter freely in the depths of her stomach. It manifests in the way she holds her tablet to her chest like it's an inseparable part of her and in an uncharacteristic silence. Only the echo of their footsteps hum around them until the murmur of the gathered crowd fills the great room ahead of them.

Eva cracks a small smile, briefly looking up at FERNANDO SILPH before they join the others.

It makes her feel small, but alive, a renewed energy cages the Butterfree and brightens her smile ever so slightly. She trusts he’ll follow as she unceremoniously makes her way to the familiar woman already seated beside freya morningstar.

“Is this seat taken?” she asks illeana reyes quietly with a gentle smile. Her fingers gently curl around the back of the chair to pull it out and slide into it beside her science sister.

---

illeana reyes’s bright greeting is exactly what she didn’t know she needed. She squeezes back, equally as tight. Her body isn’t as broken as it once was. Coma saps physical strength but that can be rebuilt. After the hug she wiggles into the seat, back and forth to get comfortable before gently placing her tablet on the table in front of her.

“A coffee, please. Thanks,” she smiles back at FERNANDO SILPH before lifting her gaze to meet everyone in turn. First freya morningstar, who was the easiest to look at considering what they had been through. A subtle crease in her brow softens when she appreciates the curved horns that resemble the crown of a true draconid queen.

Emeralds pass over the other briefly as a way of greeting as if nothing had happened, as if she had never been gone. It settles briefly on MATIAS SILPH, of course, and she offers him a warm smile that fades when it settles on PENELOPE LIVY.

As much as she tries, she can’t help but laugh, airy and soft, more of a chuckle. Eva shakes her head and her lips curl into a somewhat disappointed frown. What a simplistic way of looking at life. Must be nice to not be burdened with greater intellect, “Hmph, answers don’t die with the dead,” she softly scolds, turning her gaze from Penelope to the holograph of DEREK HOFFMAN, “To not understand would be to dishonor their sacrifice,” her autopsy of Bailey Cooper was enough proof of that.

“But I do agree there are very pressing matters in the way of Petalburg and Sootopolis,” her attention then focuses on her tablet which ignites beneath her soft touch, “Which is why we delegate the workload rather than dismiss a potentially important insight.”

By now, her coffee would have no doubt arrived which she would thank FERNANDO SILPH for and sip on quietly while others chimed in.

---