maskormenacelogs

[Hermann's in the rarely used office off the biotech lab, previously used as more of a storage closet than an office for lack of either of them knowing what to do with one. But obvious efforts have been made to clear it out of junk and unearth the desk and chairs. It's set up with a laptop, mic facing the guest chair, and two identical scripts on opposite sides of the desk.
There's an air conditioner in the window and the blinds are open, but there's still a crate in the corner with empty vials, tubes, and slapdash bits of tech arranged about as neatly as possible.

Hermann himself looks less like a scientist and more like a librarian with his round, corded glasses and pinch in his brow. He's somewhere between hoping his appointments are on time, and that they don't show up at all]

[It's a busy lab, and as ever, Hermann and Newton are bickering across their divided sections and working. Hermann's walking around with a different cane than usual, stopping every once in awhile to inspect the display, poke a few buttons, or inspect its integrity. His desk is between two different workstations of computers, and a large green chalkboard stands at the far center of his division, featuring a variety of different numbers, equations, and weird symbols.

Newton's got all the biological and medical equipment, along with a number of strange-looking samples in small to medium tanks over his side of the room. A large monitor on the wall showcases some sort of oceanography readings, but the newest addition to the lab is a mixing console.

The laboratory door is most always open, so please feel free to interrupt them.]

[Early afternoon on a work day!

The door may be open, but she's still going to knock, listening outside the door for lectures, conference calls, explosions, ~~unprofessional behavior~~ - anything it would be rude to interrupt. But it sounds like the coast is clear (ha ha).]

Dr. Gottlieb?

A while back [IT WAS, LIKE, IN APRIL, BUT SHHH], there was a network post where a friend of yours was reaching out about a toxic blood issue? Does that sound right? [Or something like that. She can't read the original conversation and she only somewhat remembers what she was told.]

Edited (i thought it would be funny if she got his name wrong but it's probably on the door or something) 2016-08-18 16:05 (UTC)

[Hermann spins about on his cane, misjudges his momentum, and grasps onto the corner of his desk to keep from falling over. He straightens, glancing down at it, and makes a note to check the grip of the rubber tip.

The woman in the doorway is startlingly pretty and gives him cause to feel just a bit embarrassed. He looks over to Newton a moment before responding]

Yes, that was.. some months ago. Is there something we can help you with?

[She also glances at Newton, but focuses on Hermann - presumably the one she's supposed to speak to.] I meant to get in touch with you then, but it slipped my mind. But then I saw your name on the roster and it seemed like fate.

Instead of messaging, I thought I would try dropping by directly. [During lunch. 3pm lunch. She steps more fully into the room.]

I'm Dr. Ross. I work in... mostly in cellular biology. Here. Dr. Banner said he mentioned me?

[Newt can 100% relate to "this is late in coming, but stuff happened." He looks up at the knock, expecting Jo or one of their regular guests. Oh. She is new. Very new. Would have known that face if he saw it before, and he meets Hermann's glance with a bit of a shrug: she's gorgeous--other-worldly pretty, elf pretty, and he isn't sure if the attraction is his or Hermann's or both. Both, probably. Newt's decided she's his type even before she opened her mouth.

Cellular Biology. Oh, awesome. One of MINE, not one of YOURS, dude.

His grating voice pipes up from the biology side of the lab, unwilling to be ignored.]

Oh! Oh, yeah, Bruce! That guy who definitely, disappointingly did NOT turn into Godzilla.

[Newt grins over at Hermann pointedly, a singsong in his voice.] Dr. Gottlieb, the lady is here to see you~ Why don't you go say hello~?

[Hermann grits his teeth against a flush, trying not to rise to Newton's bait]

Dr. Ross, yes, this is... [He waves his cane dismissively in Newton's direction] Dr. Geiszler. He is the ah.. friend you'd be looking to talk to.

[A chair appears in a blink of tiny white numbers on the cleaner side of Newton's laboratory]

I'm more of a physicist, so I doubt I would be much help. Perhaps now he'll shut up about not having any other biologists around.

[Nothing on her face suggests she finds any of this strange - although it definitely is, come on guys - until the appearance of the chair. That gives her a moment's pause, but she's been here for a few months, she can roll with it. Sure.

She gives Dr. Gottlieb a thankful nod and makes her way to the other work station, although instead of sitting or shaking his hand, she peers at the rows of tanks. Goodness, there's a lot going on.]

It's nice to meet you both. Bruce and I are found in [lab locations], respectively. He might be along in a bit if his simulation crashes again, but he can be a little... [ambiguous gesture].

Oh, yeah, Hermann can be a bit [Vague gesture of his own and a glare over at Hermann] too.

[Newt yanks off the gloves into each other, in such a way he touches neither with his own skin, and tosses them into a bio-hazard waste bin. On his left hand, left ring-finger is what looks similar to a class ring with a bright-blue gem.

He indicates the tanks she's looking at. There's some identifiable marine animal parts, if one knows what they're looking at. Then there are some more alien pieces and a section of largish claw.]

You like these? Not nearly as cool as the stuff I had back home, but--ah, anyway!

...you're here about poisonous blood?

I like to blame higher math.

[Her polite smile is growing wider, like she can't help herself. Dr. Geiszler is a little like Mr. Blue, like Sterns, untempered earnestness and excitement she automatically extrapolates as recklessness, and the set-up doesn't help with that mad science impression. But she'd liked Sterns, had understood that sort of frenetic curiosity.

And at least none of the tanks held humanoid fetuses. Crustaceans are cool beans.]

Sure. Just to compare notes. Although I can tell you less about... containment techniques than Bruce can. He's lived with it for longer - he's mentioned using super-glue [that's disgusting babe] but infections don't really pose a problem for him. [Or her, she supposes.]

[He likes her more by the second.]

Superglue, huh? [He laughs and looks at Hermann as if to say "now there's an idea!" or "can we try that?" while knowing the answer is a shake of the head and a NO, NEWTON.]

Infections aren't likely to pose a problem to me, either. I don't know if Bruce told you--I can't remember if we told him--but there's a healing element involved. Here, just a sec.

[He's gotten pretty liberal now with who he will show his healing and blood power to and jumps right into it. Newt pulls out some paper towels and then and picks out a scalpel off a tray--with the utmost care for OSHA practices, it is indeed clean and he wipes it on his shirt for good measure before carefully slicing open part of his finger. It bleeds blue, an iridescent blue that looks like it should stain everything. Newt hisses at the pain, tries to look brave and cool, and lets the blood catch in the paper towel, away from her and any other important items. After a minute or so, he's able to wipe away the blood over the cut and the skin underneath is pink with the look of being newly healed.]

Pretty gnarly, right?

[He tosses away the paper towel and wipes his hands with a wet cloth until it's cleaned of all blood, even around the nails, then those, too, go to the bio-hazard bin.]

I mean, the bad part is, this new skin doesn't come pre-tattooed, so if I take a cut across here. [He slices a finger across his heavily tattooed forearms with a cocky grin.] It's just...a clean slate.

[A pause. Uhh.] Well, the bad part other than the poison part.

[It's not really that funny, for her. There's an element of humour but it actually mostly makes her sad - proud of him for being resourceful, but also sad, like he hadn't been able to treat his body like it was human because he was too busy treating it like toxic waste.

Speaking of... that. She's not nearly as fun when the subjects are human. Call it species bias or a little too much history there.

She knows exactly what Newt is going to do when he reaches for the scalpel, and although she's more caught up than she'd have expected - blue is not a natural colour and why does it glitter like that? - she's a little more concerned about the guy casually cutting part of his finger open. More along the lines of: what else has he tried? He's still a stranger, she's not going to get all up in his business or anything, but- well, maybe a little bit.]

Impressive, but please don't do that again.

[She looks at wounds all day, it's sort of what her research is in right now, but, she doesn't really default to that clinical mode anymore. The casual detachment in her voice is just force of habit; her eyes keep straying to his hand.] When you say poison - what do you mean?

[Newt winces. Okay, yeah, not going to do it again. He classifies her with Hermann in the "nice cheekbones" and "do not show my dangerous self experiments to" categories. He will save the showing off for someone who will share the enthusiasm...and maybe the stupidity.]

Neurotoxin, really. Contact produces a ...well, sort of a catatonic state and ingestion produces paralysis, breathing issues, and, if the breathing thing is left untreated, death. I think, at least in my adaptation of this blood, it's a defense mechanism. Or that's what I'm likening it to since I'm not here to lay waste to the planet like the original Kaiju.

I have a power suppressor now, so it's not bad. I mean, it keeps Hermann and the cat safe for the moment, and that's enough. I've just got to worry about accidents.

[Poor Newt, he'll eventually find someone who can better appreciate his. Uh. Unadulterated spirit of inquiry. Assuming it doesn't get knocked out of him first. Maybe if 20 years ago, Bruce hadn't been, like, a case study for unsafe lab practices worst case scenario 700 years ago.

Misunderstanding,] Kaiju. Were you not- did the Porter turn you human?

[That would explain the blue. (No it wouldn't.)]

What? Oh! Oh no, I am and have always been human, contrary to whatever Hermann tells you. No, the Kaiju were the creatures attacking our home world, OUR Earth, under...well, it's complicated, but under direction. I'm human, Herman is human, and any powers beyond our intellect, charm, and stunning good looks are, 100%, an artificial creation by the Porter.

Mostly.

My job was to study their biology, so in a fit of irony, I guess, the Porter decided to turn me into one. And there you go.

[Hermann, who's been preoccupying himself with testing the cane's grip, has finally settled at his desk to take it apart and try different material compositions.

He's been not so subtly eavesdropping and glaring as appropriate. Still, he's kept to himself until now and sighs]

Subtle, Newton.

What?

[He looks to Newton, then Ross, and shakes his head]

Nothing. Remember she came here interested in your blood.

I know! This is backstory, man. Biologist gets the toxic blood of the very thing he's combatting. Much irony, so poetic. You go ranting everywhere about the Kaiju war. Look, just shush.

[To her]. The things I put up with, right? And yet I'm still going to marry the guy.

[And where he'd seemed fully prepared to argue a moment ago, Hermann instead clears his throat and turns back to his work. Totally not a bit red about the ears]

[With no reply to his argument, Newt looks up to see what sort of annoyance is written on Hermann's face. Instead, he finds his back to them and a pink blush running up the back of his buzzed neck to his ears.

Hermann's weakness. He has finally discovered it.

Newt looks down at his ring, and shrugs at her, and his grin is definitely that of the cat who caught the canary.]

So! Like I was saying. ...What was I saying?

[She tucks her hands into the pockets of her lab coat, very relaxed. Not doing any kind of job at hiding her grin,] Completely human, alien invasion, and the porter is an asshole.

Fully agree with you on that one, by the way. Irony has it out for OSHA. You also mentioned a cat.

Liebling! Yes! You want to see her?

[He is already pulling out his phone and the start screen is Newt squished in close, cheek to cheek with a fond but irritated Hermann, but then he has the gallery and it's pictures of a ginger cat. None of them are particularly special pictures. The cat is doing typical cat things, like laying in a stripe of sunlight or looking away from Newt's camera or seated in Hermann's lap while he uses the laptop at the desk, but he shows them off like an excited parent.]

Newton, Dr. Ross didn't come here for pictures of our cat.

[Oh look it's the peanut gallery again. He sighs, glancing back]

Apologies, Dr. Ross. If you haven't noticed, he's rather distractable. You needn't to go along with him for politeness' sake, just steer him back on topic. He won't take it personally.

You! Are not part of this conversation! Nor are you one to talk since, like 85% of my distractions are you putting in YOUR TWO CENTS.

Just do your math and look cute, you nosy asshole.

[Hermann throws out a hand and moments later, his usual cane blinks into his fingers. He levers himself up, white cane still strewn across his desk in a few pieces, and turns toward Newton looking entirely unimpressed]

Consider it repayment for each time I've posted something to the network and you've felt the need to respond to everyone that tries to answer.

Edited 2016-08-25 02:21 (UTC)

Hermann, seriously, you're going to be petty in front of a guest. Manners, dude, manners.

I really don't mind. I've always sort of wanted a cat, but Bruce is definitely a dog person.

[She crosses her arms and, after checking the bench space behind her, leans back ~~to watch the Newt-Hermann show~~ from where she had been peering at Newt's phone admiring their pale orange darling.]

She's adorable.

[Hermann exhales an aggrieved breath, eyes flicking back to Ross and very much looking like he'd launch into a further argument if she wasn't present]

Manners. Wonderful. [Throwing a hand up, he shakes his head and wanders off to the back of his lab to a crate that's yes, full of junk. But at least it's all one place and not scattered across the floor and several different surfaces like someone else's workspace]

[Sincerely to Newt and NOT deliberately loud enough to be overheard,] You two are also very cute together. Congratulations.

She's perfect. I also have a dragon and was definitely a lizard pers--[He makes an annoyed face at Hermann across the room then smiles her comment. He's so obviously pleased to hear it. And to get to make sure Hermann knows it as well.]

Baaaaabe, you hear that? She says we're cute! Come here. Tell the nice Doctor how you convinced me to be a cat person so she can con her boyfriend into a cat and ruin him for life, too--you know you want to...

Yes, yes, I heard.

[He plucks out what looks like an eviscerated section of an old tire from who knows where and sets it on his desk]

And we both know I didn't do anything in particular. I brought her home under your grudging acceptance and after a few months, you had an entire album of her on your phone.

Now, I am sorry for pulling you off topic. I hope Newton's presumptions haven't terribly offset you, Dr. Ross.

[She doesn't even try to guess what Dr. Gottlieb is doing at the moment, all the matter flickering on and off is sufficiently dazzling. She holds up both hands hastily, as if to demonstrate a lack of offence, or, just as likely, to ward off any potential cat-people-ing efforts.]

I'm not under any sort of deadline except the usual one. [Where, as time approaches infinity, the probability of an incident approaches 1.] I would much rather look at your cat. And did you say dragon?

[Glancing up,] Bruce! Dragon! [Dr. Geiszler is sort of infectious. Who needs context?]

Edited (asdfjkl;) 2016-08-25 18:48 (UTC)

[ Said boyfriend who can be a little *gestures ambiguously* is stepping into the lab right around the time Betty's calling out for him. Really, it wasn't the word 'dragon' that summoned him, even though it almost looks like it was. ]

What? What dragon?

[ Did she mean a literal dragon, because he wants to see that.

He nods at Hermann and Newt when he steps inside, offering a smile. ] Hi. Sorry, is she bothering you? She has a tendency to run off when I'm not looking.

[~~With that line, Hermann knew he was looking at his spirit animal]~~.

Oh no, they've only gotten a bit off-topic. It should be noted that the 'dragon' in question is in miniature and about the size of a small bird. Enjoys attempting to set everything on fire. Heaven knows why he insists on keeping the bloody thing.

[Rude! But she can't even take mock offense, she's too pleased Bruce managed to join them in time for Pet Corner.]

Miniature! How precious. [She clasps her hands together like an inexperienced child actress.]

Anyway, we weren't off-topic; Dr. Geiszler was showing me pictures of their cat.

Kind of like Mushu, then. Only even smaller. [ Said to Hermann. Yes he means Mulan's dragon. ]

Oh. That's nice. [ You know, nice that they have one. Not that cats are particularly nice. ] I love that you come here for scientific reasons and now you're talking about animals. And then I'm the one with a pet problem.

[Betty either never saw Mulan or else has mostly forgotten about it, so that part's incomprehensible. Presumably some sort of very small dragon.]

You are! You're the one with a pet. So you're the one with a problem. [Q.E.D., Bruce.]

Dr. Geiszler was saying his blood... superpower? - his blood superpower might be based off of an alien species he studied called Kaiju, which attacked their Earth. My guess is that they're something different. [Since Manhattan would have had some additional problems they would have heard about if Chitauri blood was a neurotoxin.

To Newt and Hermann,] We got invaded too. [Almost.]

[The nerds frequent cafes, delis, stores, a few parks and bars around De Chima. Alternatively run into them in the apartments. Basically feel free to run into one or both of them anywhere!]

[open]

Recordings- open to invitees

General Lab Visit/Work- Open to all!

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sorry sorry, dumb mobile hid the replies and then I didn't want to type another tag on mobile

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lmao do you two perhaps also share a brain sync?

xDD we've rp'd together for a few years

this is p great

Lol as long as you're not annoyed with them. Let us know if they're too much

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nope i'm not great at creative chaos but i LOVE it

barges in late with starbucks

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Anywhere else in De Chima- Open to all!