chlorophylliac | 20 || Video + Spam

20 || Video + Spam

Since the vampire and now the angel have both resigned their posts but thoughtfully left the door unlocked, I'm adopting the greenhouse and garden.

At least, until one of you idiots decides I'm turning them into my own personal fortress and threatens to hose me down with herbicide.

[Or, more pragmatically, until another Warden gets a key. Of course she can't access the gardening tools, but…she's not the kind of person to be inconvenienced by that.]

[Private to Zev]

There's enough space to seed some of the excess from our collection. Do you have any preferences? I can make chemical adaptations to the soil as necessary.

[Private to Morgana]

I've heard you returned.

Do you remember anything?

[Open spam]

[It's raining lightly on deck, the shower a soft constant drumbeat on the glass overhead. Ivy's still damp from crossing the deck to get here, but the rain and the humidity inside the greenhouse are pleasant, even rejuvenating.

All she's got to do today is basic maintenance. She's mapping plants and soil types in a notebook, occasionally deadheading the spring-flowering plants, and checking for early indicators of disease. Nothing so far; Castiel knew his work. Still, it's nothing to reach into the more vulnerable species and rethread a few strands of DNA, decreasing their susceptibility.

Not having access to the greenhouse equipment cupboard is only irritating insofar as it's also where the less dangerous resources - seed trays, watering cans - are kept. So she's liberated both from her own cabin, along with some fertilizer she made herself, and spends a little time readying a few trays to grow seedlings for the outdoor garden.

It's all easy, meditative work, and it would be quiet if not for the hum and chatter of the plants all around her.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ She gave him a time, and Megamind arrives on it. Only one brainbot in tow, and an odd wand in hand. Courting disaster? No. Just -- trying to keep himself busy, after all. No inmate, Barbara and Gaeta's lousy attempt at a coup... ]

[ Things like this meant he was actually helping people, as opposed to being a petty dick about things. ]

[By this time, Ivy's long since finished her sweep of the plants on deck; she was just about wrapping up some other work when she hears the knock. She comes to the door in a short white coat and a pair of lab goggles and nothing else, looking like something that would pop out of a cake at a botanist's birthday party.]

Megamind.

[She eyeballs the robot for a second, then steps back to let them both in, using the goggles to push her hair back. On the left side of the door is her original cabin - a smaller and simpler but much busier greenhouse than the one on deck - and on the right is her small but neatly equipped lab space, the two separated by a glass wall.

Some of her splicing projects are in evidence; for example, a slender tree in one corner is glowing of its own accord. There's also a small, leafy rabbit hybrid lazily weaving around the undergrowth.]

[ ... Ivy this isn't fair, he's in a relationship with a brainy reporter and here you are being a scientist's wet dream. Honestly. Thankfully, he's less about physicality and more about intellectual stimulation, so far far hasn't talked science yet, and he's safe. ]

Ivy.

Oh! Well, this isn't too bad. And with the glass wall there's plenty of way for light to go both ways. [ Already looking at the ceiling, pondering what growth might have to be moved or trimmed back to make for fixtures. ]

[The ceiling is already reasonably fixtured, with rows of tubes and wiring that make up the automatic sprinkler system. Ivy does most of her watering by hand, but it came with her from home and it's nice to have a backup just in case she's heading out to port or, well, is in Zero.]

The overhead beams can stand to bear a greater load. We had the place renovated not long before the Admiral decided he liked the look of it.

Go figure.

[ He popped out measuring tape, pointed to the brainbot to another corner s o he can get dimensions. He might be able to recreate it in his head, but measure twice, cut once, right? ]

I'll see if I can get some of my own elements, rig a separate power system so it's wired into the barge if I can help it. Something you might have to put batteries in, unless I can get one of my power-cells in there. Then it can run independently.

[She nods her acknowledgement. The more she can be independent from the Barge's own power supply - whatever it is - the better.]

Thank you.

No problem. [ He keys the numbers the bot gives him into a pad. ] It's better than sitting around in the lab laboring over numbers or waiting for Rorschach and Chris to have another row.... [ Or anything with Chris right now. ] My only other 'side' project is the egg incubator I whipped up for Mark. Just need to put it together, soon as the parts are done fabbing.

[She arches an eyebrow.]

An egg incubator? Why?

[Don't say 'to incubate eggs', Megamind.]

To incubate an egg, obvi-- [ oh there's that look. ] He brought an egg back from port. Itty-bitty bird's egg, seems like. He wants to incubate and hatch it.

[She smirks.] How confident is he that it's a bird? I don't remember much about that port but the dragons stuck in my mind.

Size is still fairly small, and the candling would indicate bird. Especially with no leathery shell; reptiles tend toward softer, leathery shelled eggs-- birds go for thin, hard shells.

I raised alligators, back home, so -- just sayin', it's probably a bird's egg.

[She shrugs. As much as she was kidding, honestly, a dragon hatchling on the Barge could only be an improvement. It might cheer up Morgana.]

I'm sure the two of them will be very happy together.

[ He smirks a little, glancing up from his tablet as he made more notes. ]

I'm pretty sure Mark is capable of being happy anywhere.

Anyway, I laid in the numbers, and this is what I'd be looking at for maximum light spread. If you'd rather have areas you're focused on, that'd be fine too, just let me know where so I can adjust.

[ and he passes over the tablet ]

[She sweeps over his notes with a trained eye. She's had a sideline in designing proprietary growlight systems before, ever since college, and she can't deny this is a strong backup.]

No, this is good. This ought to be everything they'd need.

[And now there's a green bunny coming to nuzzle your foot, Megamind. That's how much the plants approve of you right now.]

Good. [ He looks down, and then knees, gloved hand hovering as though he might touch the thing, but stops himself. She's poisonous, they might be poisonous, who knows. ]

[ But he's also a guy who built robots so he wouldn't be lonely, so-- he gets it, too. ]

Do you name them? Your hybrids, I mean.

[She reaches down and scoops it up, cradling it against her chest.]

No. I didn't often have the chance to get attached.

Ah. Yes, I know how that can be. [ He straightens, and extends his hand letting, letting his brianbot rub against his knuckles. ] Here, though, no? They're not in danger here.

You can't say that's entirely true. [She strokes the long, soft leaves of its ears.] Anyway, it's habit now. They don't need names.

[And a name is an emotional investment, and emotional investments are weaknesses.]

No, suppose that is, or that they do. [ He shrugs once, scritching his brainbot along it's jaw. ] anyway, the lights will take about four days to construct, less If I get everything I ask for promptly, and a couple of hours to install. The power cell will be the tricky bit.

[Ivy glances up at him.]

Tricky in what way?

Just getting the materials from our esteemed Admiral, mostly. He could give me one whole cloth but I always prefer to build myself. We will see what pans out in the meantime.

[She nods.]

The Admiral does seem to allow some grace periods between instances of madness in his crew. We're probably safe for a few weeks at least.

By my measurements, we should have a Flood before the end of the month. Fits the pattern, at least. Or maybe he won't be quite as drunk at the wheel as usual and we'll make it to may without taking on water.

[ He's not a gambling man, though, and wouldn't take that bet even if he was. ]

[She scoffs quietly.]

And how likely do you think that is?

We'll hit something before we see May Day.

20 || Video + Spam

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