Just Another Night at the Lab [Closed]

[Kari Muffin]

"If you saw my lab, you'd understand that no one can find much of anything but me. My filing methods are awful." Even if that was an understatement of the century he wasn't about to correct himself. He had no elaborate way to file things. He just remembered where he put them and what they were under most of the time. Sometimes he spent a few hours looking for files, of course. Nothing was perfect.

Rocky grinned. Being alone in a strange place was always terrifying, and he did want to check out the house again. "We should pick a date and check it out then. Frankly a long break from my research maybe the thing I need to have a break through."

Working too hard was always a bad thing. He needed a hobby, honestly. That was the problem with being interested in flight. There was nothing else he could really find interesting for a hobby's sake.

[danishweasel]

Ataxia giggled at the mention of a disorganized lab. Her mother had trained her well to keep file cabinets and always to keep them all organized by project number and to have the project numbers categorized and kept handy for easy access. And it was a good thing she did it too. She had enough hazards around that lab without there being a fire hazard on top of it.

"Thanks! I've personally found that taking breaks here and there for a bit of fun helped bring some fresh air to the noggin, helps to clear the head and get new perspectives on things. It'll do you good, I'm sure. And hey, maybe after we go to the house, I can help you get your files together. It's best to keep that sort of info tidy, in case you need to look back on it."

[Kari Muffin]

He always did want help to keep his lab clean, but it was horribly embarrassing to let anyone know what it looked like. It was a complete and utter mess, and if his mother had seen it she would have had a heart attack. Of all the traits he got from his parents, tidiness wasn't one of them.

"I don't know about that. I think it would probably take days to sort out my mess of a lab," Rocky blushed under his fur. The thought was horrifying in all of its truthfulness. Ataxia probably thought he was joking. Rocco really wished he was. "But I imagine it wouldn't hurt to try at least. Don't want to give up before I've ever started. That would just be silly."

The raccoon's tail swished with thought. It had been a long while since he actually met someone he could hold a conversation with. It was amazing, really.

[danishweasel]

"Oh, I wouldn't worry too much about that. I had a friend once, and their lab, well, they had enough papers thrown about to completely cover the floor! Couldn't see even one tile, and these papers, they were lab reports! You can't imagine how long it took to get that sorted out, especially since some of the pages were stuck together..."

Ataxia glanced up at Rocky. He seemed kinda...embarrassed? No reason for that. She smiled and waved a paw as if to shoo away any sort of bashfulness.

"Wouldn't hurt at all. And really, it's not uncommon at all for Corvies to have messy labs. I mean, with all of us so wrapped up in our work, most don't think to waste the time on things like organization. Heck, the only reason my parents were such neat freaks was because they worked with acids and if they left any papers laying about, they'd most likely get holes burned through 'em. So we'll just clear out what ya don't need, keep what ya do, and all of a sudden, you'll have more room in your lab!"

[Kari Muffin]

She made it sound so very simple. Even though papers covering the floor were the least of his mess. It was just so horribly untamed he couldn't imagine it would be that easy to tidy up. That's why he let it get so messy in the first place. "Well, my mom was pretty talented at the organization thing since she worked with some pretty complicated genetics and recessive traits and the like. Her research was completely over my head and so were her organization skills."

The truth was a funny thing. It sounded harsh whenever it was spoken in jest. Funny how that worked. "I guess I just get a little embarrassed when other people see my work and mess. I usually don't have guests over because of it. It's silly, really, that I just haven't fixed it but... I suppose in some way I'm okay with being a mess as long as I know where everything is."

And he did most of the time. No one was perfect, even with a filing system he was sure he would misplace something. Things just worked like that.

[danishweasel]

Huh, there must have been something that happened psychologically with Moms to make them all so neat and tidy. She knew that it didn't develop in Dads, that's for sure. At least not hers. She still remembered the time when her dad accidentally mislabeled a bottle. That mistake ended up ruining an experiment of three months. Still, it was funny watching Mom running around the lab, smacking Dad with a meter stick.

"Hey, no worries about mess. I'd rather have a nice disorganized friend than have a neat freak who's a grouch any day. I'm just willing to help seeing as it'll make your research easier. Anyway, I can't really say much about my lab right now. It's a total wreck. Then again, when you have a bander running loose around it for a little while...can't really expect much else to happen."

[Kari Muffin]

Rocky grinned. At least she wouldn't judge him if she saw the horrible mess. Assuming them going to the house would actually happen. He blinked at the mention of a bander running around a lab. "I've never had that happen. The last bander I worked with was pretty mellow, and I've never had one for a pet."

Wow. He never had had a pet period. That almost felt like he was missing something from his childhood. Then again, if he got some pet now? He couldn't imagine having to take care of one, and if it got into his lab? Oh that would just make things fantastically bad, wouldn't it? "When would you want to go to the house? I could easily work around your times since I have no... solid obligations, and the person I'm working with has her own plans and has very little concern about me. Personally, I could careless if I made her furious because I decided to take an extend break."

[danishweasel]

"I wouldn't really consider Vortex a pet...He's one of my feral banders, a test subject. He got loose earlier when I needed him for testing. Looks like someone set off a bomb in there now. Glass everywhere...I'll have to clean that up later, before it creates some kind of bio-hazard..."

Ataxia sighed at the thought. She really ought to find some way to be able to test Vortex without having him running around. Maybe thinner syringes that could fit through the bars...Maybe. More planning would have to go into that later.

"Oh, I could go at any time. I don't really have any serious research going on that needs constant watch."

As Ataxia continued to listen to Rocky, she tilted her head, narrowing her eyes.

"Why work with her, then? She sounds super-mean...at least, you really don't like being around her. Why do it? Sounds like a miserable time."

[Kari Muffin]

Oh dear, that did sound like a horrible mess. He certainly could live without feral banders running around his lab. Banders in general running around he could live without. He wouldn't be crushed to any degree.

Why was he working with that feline? Well, he needed a living test subject with intelligence. "It's complicated. I met her by accident when I was in desperate need of a test subject who could tell me what they felt. Unfortunately when I was about to strike a deal with the man... she came from nowhere and decided to make a deal with him as well. I would be more willing to do this if I didn't have to deal with her... her... EGO." Rocky hurumpfhed at that point. He didn't like speaking ill of people but this woman... she was just so frustrating.

"I'm sorry, I must sound awful complaining. She just gives me a headache." Rocky shook his head in dismay. Really. He just had awful luck with that woman.

[danishweasel]

"It's okay. It's healthy to talk to other people about what irks ya. Like purging the body of toxins. Keep it all cooped up and it's bound to develop into something nasty...Though it's a shame that you and your research partner don't get along so well. That's actually how my parents met up."

It was true that her parents first became close by working on experiments together at a shared laboratory. Soon after, the experiments started leaving the laboratory and into the bedroom and soon the arrival of an unexpected variable (Ataxia) made their relationship a constant.

"Even if she does have kind of an ego problem, it must be nice being able to work with someone else while doing your research. You get to have second opinions, different perspectives, not to mention a couple of helping hands. That is, as long as you've both got somewhat similar goals...though from the sounds of it, that doesn't sound the case."

Ataxia looked at Rocky with a bit of concern. She didn't like to see people frustrated...or hurt or scared or sad or any emotion other than happy, thrilled, and content. She hoped that maybe a bit of chatting could ease the tension, make him more relaxed.