Looking For A Specialist

[Tamara Sulik]

“We have a scan here? I know I shouldn’t be surprised but damn...” Yes, she shouldn’t be surprised. Why wouldn’t there be? They loved to keep things behind the school’s doors and they had a lab. But it was still a scan machine, it was kind of surprising they would be able to afford and keep one there. “I guess you’re right. I wonder sometimes if it would be really that bad for people to know about us though.” She whispered that last bit. She knew there would always be some who’ll be aggressive against them but she was not the kind of person who liked to hide, not even for the ‘good of all’.

Tam felt like she should be scared of someone nodding his head so much at the thought of studying her but she was not. Even with his snakes around, Tam felt like she could kick his ass so easily if he tried something that he did not consider him a threat. Besides, it was his field of action, so of course he would be passionate about it. It was important. “As long as you don’t tell me you want to play inside my brain,” she told him, shrugging to show she didn’t really mind whether he wanted to learn more about her power or not. She didn’t think she was the one in most need of information and help regarding her mutation but she noticed how unique her power seemed to be. Unique had a way of interesting people.

She was not surprised that people freaked out seeing a snake. She sort of did too yet was ready to claim she could have gone far worse in that situation. “I’m not really surprised. Snakes aren’t exactly the kind of animal that put people at ease.” She did feel sorry for him if he couldn’t help the need to have a snake around because, as she talked with him, she could tell he was a good guy. Had he been a few years older, Tam would have likely flirted with him. She didn't think she was now, even though she knew she could still do that if she wanted to. But the idea of being called a cougar made it not tempting at all.

She dared a look at Seiji and smiled as she saw his expression. “I’m fine. I tend to get headaches only after I stop making them. And feel dizzy. The movement requires more concentration though,” she explained. The hologram seemed to fade slightly away as she talked to Seiji. His feet and legs started to disappear. She focused back on it and they returned. “You can try and touch it. It’s perfectly harmless. It’s all just light, really. You know, like a projector?” As she said that, she kept her eyes locked on her fake Seiji so that it would remain there. She barely blinked while doing so because it caused the image to blur when she did.

[Seiji Lockard]

"Yes, it's new but we have one in the hospital-ish area of the school. Ever since the whole shooting event, the school has been trying to make sure we have a lot of on hand technology to help out the students so the pressure it not on all the healers. Don't want them dying in the process of trying to save lives." Seiji said with nod. That would suck if someone was just trying to help another person and died in the process. With the job that Seiji had he was especially concerned with that matter and wanted measures to be taken that would avoid such an outcome or at least try and avoid it when they could. At her comment about wondering how people would be if they found out about them he got really silent.

He had thought about it a long time and from what he went through and the stories of what other kids had went through...it would not be good. There were actually a lot of kids who ended up killing people with their power when they were kids. Sure in some of those stories those parents or people had been trying to hurt them but the fact still remained that they killed them. People would cling to that one bad thing for sure to validate how bad they were. "One day they will find out. Someone will mess up and it will happen. While I'm sure not everyone will hate us, the majority will. It is how we humans are. New things that we don't understand scare us. When we fear something we harm it or those who support it. History makes that clear and while people like to calm we are not like were in the past, we still are the same, the difference is that like with everything with time something become the norm." Seiji went on to explain.

It was still his opinion and he was not going to fight her in order for her to get just how dangerous and bad it was going to be when mutants were found out. He looked down at the floor, turning red a little when he regularized that he was talking a lot again. He really could not help it, he thought a lot and thus had a lot to say. "Oh! No, no, no. Playing would just be foolish and could serious harm you. If anything I would want to study your brain but that would be best with an image instead of opening you up." Seiji said. Missing the point that she was trying to make because he was taking it in a literally since of playing in her brain.

He gave a small nod, looking a little sad at the point she made about snakes. They really did not love and care all about making people feel good. Seiji's were only like that because of the effect his power had on them. Normal snakes could care less about a human so long as it didn't bother them they didn't care. Seiji was twenty-five years old, he didn't know how old Tamara was but he would assume she was pretty young as well. That and age didn't really matter at this point, because they both were adult. He just didn't flirt because he didn't really know how to or even dared to do such a thing that would offend. Seiji moved quickly to touch and really get a close look at her creation.

He was worried about her the whole time, so he was doing it all pretty fast so she could stop using her power. Of course he would be observing her then as well. "Wow, this is truly amazing. The applications for this ability are endless, but I do worry about what it is doing to you." Seiji said as he ruffled his hair before grabbing a seat. "Thank you for showing me. Now can you tell me how you feel at this moment when you are done using your power?" Seiji asked. He looked as if he was about to write some notes down but of course had nothing in his hands and was just putting it to memory.

[Tamara Sulik]

Tamara tried not to shudder at the memory of the ‘shooting event’. She was there, at the school, trying to get everyone into safety at the time. She thought the school tried to make people understand they were not harmful and would not let anyone, especially not their own government, intimidate and hurt children. Or something like that. But going into some form of lockdown, gathering all into one point seemed like a good strategy. Especially if the priority was the kids’ safety. “Makes sense but I had no idea we had such funds. I’m still fighting for a decent coffee machine,” she let out. It was partially a joke as she would not argue that buying a scan was more important than a coffee machine for the teachers.

Unlike him, Tam had not been thinking all that much about the possibility of people being aware of their existence. It was not like telling them unicorns existed and they could see some in a zoo, they were talking about human beings who were a bit more than human beings living amongst them. She saw enough movies of the like to know it rarely ended well for her kind. “Yeah, I suppose we’ll be long gone before they accept mutants as something normal. The best we can do is try to make this pill easier to swallow.” She paused a moment, thinking about it. She drank some of her coffee, her gaze lost in space before she shrugged. “In the end, I don’t really mind when it comes to me. I can easily hide it and my power is harmful only to myself. You, you can easily pass only for the kind but weird snake guy if they don’t know. But some of them,” and she nodded towards the door as she had none of the students to nod at here. “Some of them can’t control it as well, might never. Some can’t hide. I’m sorry for them. They’ll be the first ones targeted not because they are the most dangerous but because they are the easiest to spot.”

She smiled, amused that he would take her words seriously. Was this guy single? He couldn’t seriously be single. This behavior of his was almost cute. If it was not for the snakes. Yeah, she supposed the snakes were the only reason why he might be single. “Glad to hear,” she replied, her smile still on. She noticed his reaction as she mentioned his snakes. There were people who loved them as pets. Otherwise they wouldn’t find some in pet stores. But you could still find more easily people loving dogs or cats than reptiles.

The fake Seiji was looking at the real Seiji while his hand could go through the body. As she said, light was pretty harmless. It really was as if Seiji put his hand between the projector and the screen. She was not quite sure what applications her power could have but she let him believe whatever he wanted. “For now, fine. I might get a little dizzy but I didn’t use it enough for any headache. Plus you were here so it required less concentration. My eyes hurt a little too, but that’s because I’ve been staring at it for too long,” she told him as he asked what her side-effects were right now. “I was told my brain sort of worked like a movie projector.”

[Seiji Lockard]

"We have a lot more money than people actually know, I think that is how the school wants it...but don't tell anyone I told you that. I don't think it's something I', supposed to share freely." Seiji quickly said at her words. He knew roughly how much the school had because of some of the papers he had been given from Elsa that were done by someone he had considered a good friend back before she died in the shooting. It was likely thanks to that friend that the school was able to clear up any debts or whatever there was that allowed there to be more cash flow into the school. Plus with them buying their own equipment, that just removed other cost that would have been going towards outside the school.

He just gave a small nod at her words. He could not say for sure when things would be okay for them and regular people once their secrete got out. If history showed one thing, it was how the human race acted the same way in every situation when information or just in general when it came to someone being different. It was just a part of human nature it seemed. Also apart of human nature was to adapt so there would come a day when Mutant and normal people would be able to live together and laugh at the notion of there being any separation or mass killings on either side. It was how things worked and how they would work for the rest of the human races.

"I do feel bad for them too. It is also part of why I do the work that I do. To help those who can't hide their powers as well. To make it so there are at least ways that they can...just like the school tries to do. We can only do so much in the end because it's on the students as well." Seiji said, looking down at the floor for a moment. He honestly could not understand why there would be any students who would fight what this place had to offer. Seiji left it at that, not wanting her to see the side of him that rarely came to the surface. The angry and frustrated side of him that felt so helpless at times when it came to trying to help others out and make the world a little easier on them, but they would reject it.

He gave her a friendly smile at her words and refocused on fully examining the hologram of himself. It was kind of weird to see himself, but it did give him a sort of a confidence boost because he personally thought that he was at least attractive on some levels. It really was just like a hologram and Seiji could think of a few ways she could use her power. Probably not in ways that she would enjoy but there were ways out there for her. When she spoke of how she was feeling, all of his attention was now on her. He was wearing his lab coat, so he did have a few things on him. One of which being his light which he used to check her eyes, not shinning them directly into them or anything like that, but allowing him to get a better looked at them.

He even reached out to touch her temples, going in almost full examining mood before he started to blush once he realized what he was starting to do. "Sorry, got a little excited and carried away there." Seiji quickly apologized, clearly his throat and almost running to grab his seat and go back to sipping at his coffee.

[Tamara Sulik]

Tamara laughed at what Seiji told her. Or more that he asked her not to tell anyone he told her that. “Don’t worry. I have no intention of doing anything that can harm this school, anyway,” she assured him. He was taking some things so seriously when he didn’t really have to. In a way, it was sort of cute. She didn't think a naive boy could be cute. But he was. Kind of like puppies. Yeah, Seiji was a puppy. One with a huge brain and a snake as best friend but still, a puppy. Anyway, when it came to how much money this school had, she knew she’d never be privy to this information. And she didn't really care about knowing. It was not her money after all and she would not argue that buying a scan was not significantly more important than whatever she might suggest. Although, a raise might not be that bad of an idea...

Seiji said nothing as she called him the weird snake guy. It was probably something he had been called before. Plus he chose to focus on the part of her speech that was important. “Good luck telling them that. Those who need the most work on their power are either those who want to do it the least or are too afraid to do that, as you noticed earlier,” she replied, her hand lifting in the air to gesture towards the ceiling or, to be exact, the higher floors and the girl they just talked to. She sighed. “I’m not good with that, honestly. I don’t have the patience required. When they rebel against it, I prefer not to fight, before I lose my temper. But that doesn’t make me like it,” she admitted. Maybe it was her motherly instincts that made her care for them despite everything in her being fighting against staying in this place.

Tam was used to get men’s attention but not because of her power or the effects it can have on her. It was weird to be the patient here. What Seiji did was for the students, or it was at least how she saw it. She was not a student so it was strange for her. But she let him, since he seemed to like that. She was a little caught by surprise when he came over to her with a light in his hands. “You might want to warn first,” she said after she startled. She didn’t mind although this was unusual. He apologized and retreated to his coffee and seat. “It’s ok, I get it. But I’m fine, don’t worry. I need a little more than that to wear me down. It’s not like I made you gig or anything,” she told him. The hologram was long gone of course at this point. And she was not going to bring it back. Not unless he really wanted to.

[Seiji Lockard]

"Thanks, I trust you." Seiji informed her. He probably should not have ever said anything that made it seem like he could not trust her. He was just being careful, not wanting to get in trouble or mess anything up and cause a problem for someone. It was more so she didn't accidentally just talk about it to someone when it was not something that everyone needed to know. She seemed like a nice person who did clearly have the interest at school at heart, or else she would not have done what she did for the girl they had helped a little while ago. He let out a sigh as he sadly nodded in agreement with Tamara's words. It was true that those who needed the most help were the ones to not really seek it by choice.

They were either afraid, didn't like authority, or just hated what they were. There were likely other reasons for it, too many to name but the problem still was that this sort of thing could not be fully done on your own. At some point kids would understand that, but it would be harder then, so Seiji tried to make sure he always offered his help and informed people what the school could do for them every time he met someone new. The latter of which didn't happen very often, but he was working on that as well. "That is why it is up to us to have to deal with their stubborn ways or at least know the right people to pass them off to weather they like it or not." Seiji responded with a small nod.

Sure forcing a kid did also add the rebellious nature but they were children and sometimes you had to force a kid to do something in order for something to be done. "Nothing wrong with that. At least you are aware of that and reached out for someone to help you. That marks a good person in my book, not like you just gave up and went back to doing something you enjoyed." Seiji pointed out to her, giving her a even warmer smile. Pretty much no matter what she said, he was going to think that she was a good person and doing a good job at her job.

As for his whole checking her, it just sort of happened and he felt bad for invading her personal space like that. Thankfully she forgave him and was also assuring him that she was fine, he was still not so certain but he would not press the matter. A person did know their body on some levels and she didn't look like she was having any ill effect at the moment. "It has been a while since I have heard anyone say the word gig." Seiji admitted, chuckling a little as he sipped at his coffee. He took a quick look at his watch but didn't say anything, resting his cup near his snake to add to the warmth they were currently getting.

[Tamara Sulik]

“You can,” she assured him even though she believed he might just trust people too easily. For that however, she believed that he could. She was not going to betray the school. There was a time her loyalty might be less strong, when she was not an American citizen and all. If she was given the chance to be and not be sent back to Serbia or labelled anything bad in return to some information, she might have. Now, she was not afraid.

Tamara had fought a little in her youth. She was not the kind of person to ask for help unless she really couldn’t do it on her own. Even then, it might take a while before she admitted it. Especially when she was a teenager. Now, she understood she had limits but then she hated to have them pointed at her. She probably fought, even though she didn’t think she had been this hard to train. She would have to ask her old trainers and since they were in Transylvania, she doubted she’d ever be able to do that. It mattered little. The fact was she understood those who fought against authority as she had been a little like that in her youth. She wished she could be the proof to them that it was worth giving it a shot instead of always fighting but she was with the staff now, making her kind of the enemy to some of them.

She actually liked being more of a messenger between students and trainers when they refused to go to class then be the one who tried to understand them and make them take the right decision. As she told Seiji, she didn’t have enough patience to do more. It was enough though. She had everyone in the dorms to watch for, that made a lot of people. She couldn’t give everyone the time they needed. She had a smirk when he didn’t think this impatience was that bad of a thing. “I was like them as a kid. Rebellious. I hated being told what to do and even more what I couldn’t do. I still kind of do but I understand I have my limits. Luckily for me, that’s where you come in,” she said, an amused smirk on.

He still looked worried for her so she worked on reassuring him. “The fact you were here made me concentrate less on the imagine I wanted to create. And I didn't make too much movement so it’s alright.” He seemed amused by her choice of words. She shrugged not really minding even though it might make her feel old a little. She refused to think of it that way however. “Would you prefer to be breakdancing? Although my knowledge of both is rather limited so I don’t guarantee either would have looked really good.” She noticed him check his watch, just as he was thinking of everything they said, the mention of his test coming back with a bunch of questions. The fact he looked at his watch however made her shove them away. Another time. “Sorry, you probably want to go back to work. I’m not stopping you, really. Thanks again for your help earlier.”

[Seiji Lockard]

Seiji just felt like hugging this woman when she assured him that he could trust her, and he truly believes it. Yes, he did trust pretty easily, but he felt like he was a good judge of characters or at the very least his snakes were. Granted they did tend to like people because of certain features on their bodies; boobs, and if they felt like a person was either super nice or had a naughty side to them. Why his snakes wanted him to be around such people, Seiji had no idea but he was friendly to all so be not really worried about it. Leevi was already telling him why he should hand around Tamara a little longer and try to give her a hug so Leevi could get a chance to slither on her.

Seiji ignore such advice, because he already knew Tamara was not comfortable with snakes and he really didn't want Leevi to end up dying because he was too curious about the woman's body. "That’s why you are perfect for the job. You get it, deep down and you stick to your guns. I think the kids relate to adults who are like real, tell it like it is and if the kid is being stupid they let them know. Granted all the legal laws on it make it a little difficult but I don't think it does a kid any good to baby them forever." Seiji said, not sure if he was explaining it right. He could not properly have an opinion on it since he was very much a loner; not by choice, in his childhood. Still, he went off observations and just from theories from said observations and sort of 'test'.

He relaxed a little when she added more assurance to being fine and how what she did was not complicated at all with him being there and her not making it move. "Okay, if you’re feeling changes, let me know." Seiji said, leaving the matter alone for now even if he still was going to be worried about her deep down. He chuckled at her question on the break dancing comment, shaking his head no. "I think I would miss that one as well. I'm not very in with past or current words...not all of them anyways." Seiji informed her as he ruffled his hear, a little embarrassed. "Oh, no rush. Yes I would like to get back to my work but I'm enjoying your company. I just don't want to take up too much of your time and also wanted to get right to handling the paper work for the test I would like to perform on you." Seiji quickly said when she pointed out about him leaving and how she was sorry.

He didn't want her to feel like that; yes he was a busy guy, but he didn't mind staying up later to catch up for the sake of being with someone. He didn't get this sort of thing often so had a habit to try and cling to it too long but he was aware others did have lives and could not always push their bodies to stay up and work days on end like he did.

[Tamara Sulik]

Tamara even managed to forget about Leevi on Seiji’s person. If the snake were to move more than it did right now, she would remember its presence but for now, she didn’t think about that. Tamara didn’t have a lot of what you’d call intellectual conversations. Not because she couldn’t handle it. Seiji could see that she had a brain and could understand even his scientific methods if he explained them well enough. But peopled tended to talk of much lighter things with her. It might be because of the cliché that prettier a woman, the dumber she was. Or just because she did not befriend a lot of scientists. Either way, she had not really noticed Seiji’s gaze going over the usual parts of her body men’s gaze normally wandered to and for that alone, she appreciated this conversation. It was a nice change for the woman who was used to be seen as an object more than a person.

She never thought that her attitude made her perfect for the job but Seiji thought differently and explained it to her. “I’m not very good at babying anyone,” she admitted, looking away from Seiji. She had been thinking of her own son as she said that. Even when he was a baby with her, she had not been so good at that. Sure, she cared for him, gave him everything he needed and watched over him, but she never did too much. It was not like her. She was not one of those mothers that overly protected their kids and thought they’d die just because they fell on the pavement and scraped their knees. It was important to do that, to learn how to get back up. She couldn’t see those babied kids become anything good later on in their lives.

She tried not to think of Mikael. It always came along with a stinging to her heart. She nodded as he asked her to tell him if there were any changes. “Will do,” she assured even though she was sure she would not. She smiled but said nothing about the dances. It mattered little in the end, she said those only to explain what might have strained her power. he told her he was in no hurry and she nodded again. She was not kicking him. She would have to excuse her if an emergency arose but until then, she could stay here and enjoy a coffee with him. “That’s good. And don’t worry about me, I have to stay here anyway in case there’s an emergency. I’d be here even if you were not,” she told him. There was little point in constantly walking the south wing like a prison guard after all.

Since it was settled they would both stay here, she started thinking once again of her son and the test Seiji talked about. “That test you mentioned earlier, does it work? I mean, the one to help determine if someone’s a mutant. Are you able to tell someone would have a power before it showed up?”

[Seiji Lockard]

Seiji indeed saw that Tamara was an intelligent individual, but he pretty much assumed that about everyone that he met. It didn't matter how they looked, because the most handsome guy could be really smart or dumb as bricks and vice versa. He always left his opinion on someone open until he got to know them and treated everyone the same. So when it came to Tamara he treated her like he would treat every smart woman out there and it was just an added bonus that she was indeed attractive. His eyes might have wondered if he was not busy actually talking to her but even still he was the kind of guy who was very wrapped up in his manners.

It was rude to just stare at a woman's chest if that was not what she wanted you to do and he belied in giving everyone the respect that they deserved. Plus Tamara was nice to him so it was only right that he treated her well like she was treating him. He would not deny that she was attractive if she asked but he was not going to point it out unless it went in well with the conversation. "Nothing wrong with that. Some people need that tough love to learn." Seiji assured her, nodding his head a few times. He still thought she did great at her job, and he had to not be the only one since she still had her job. She assured him that she would let him know if she felt any different and that he didn't really have to worry about her.

She needed to stay there anyways, so it mattered little if he was there with her or not. It helped him feel slightly better but not all the way since he didn't like the idea of leaving her alone and also that him being there or not didn't really matter in terms of her being there. He still decided to remain for at least a little longer, until him coffee was done and then he would get back to his work. During that time Tamara spoke up about the test he had informed her about earlier. "In theory, yes. Unfortunately I have not been able to test it out yet since you know the general issues that come alone with human testing and the fear of people knowing if their kid is a mutant or not. However; I do feel pretty confident that I can tell if a child will be a mutant or not, outside of the infant stage. A toddler or older at least." Seiji said with certainly.

He still had not been able to actually test out his experiment but from what he had been able to do on those with powers already, he was confident he could tell when someone was already passed the toddler stage if they would be a mutant or not. He would need to actually be allowed to test on infants to see if he could determine it even younger.

[Tamara Sulik]

Maybe it was cynical to say that Tamara had rarely met guys like Seiji with good manners who actually talked to her like she had a brain as well as breasts but that didn't make it any less true. She feared it said more about her and the people she met in her life than said people she met but Tamara didn't really bother with such details. She dealt with her share of douchebags, jerks, misogynists and any other pleasant adjective similar. She also met a few nice guys but they tended to get away, snatched by some woman who turned out to be faster than she was at that. Not that she wanted to do that with Seiji though. She was leaving him to someone a little more of his age than she was. That didn't change he was one of the good guys though and she had not met a whole bunch of those.

She laughed at his words. He was being so nice here that she wondered if he’d find a way to justify her actions if she said she did something illegal. “You’re a glass-half-full kind of guy, aren’t you?” In fact, she bet he might even argue it was full, full of water and air. There was nothing wrong in being an optimist always seeing the good side of things. Tamara tended to be too realistic for her own good to really bring herself to focus on the good and ignore the bad. She would have gone over being adopted or bullied at school too but she wouldn’t take it with the smile Seiji seemed to have as he said it was in the past.

She didn’t mean to say that his presence did not matter to her, it was always pleasant to have someone around during the more boring hours of the day, but she also didn't want him to think she stayed only because he didn’t want to leave. Even if he chose to spend his entire day here, she would ditch him at some point if she had to. Work was more important than staying here to chat. At least during working hours.

“How about mutant parents wondering if their children also are? It’s just a blood sample, no?” Normally, tests were done on a sample of some kind. Maybe this one was an injection. If so, she could see why some people were hesitant. She wouldn’t want to put her son at risk, just to find out. But a bit of blood... Of course, it was pointless. He was in Serbia. He couldn’t ship his blood to America. She shouldn’t think about that. “So a child who’s like ten and soon entering puberty would already show in his blood if he’ll be a mutant or not, even if the change had yet taken pace, is that it?”

[Seiji Lockard]

Seiji just smiled a little more as she was laughing, no doubt about how he was still be supportive of what she said and her view on herself. Yes, it was likely true that even if she broke the law he would be able to try and justify why she did it and why it was not a bad thing. Sure, that only went so far but he was having a hard time thinking Tamara would actually do something bad just because she wanted to do it or hurt someone. She had been far too kind to him for him to think in such a way, so it was just not going to happen. "I think so, or at least I try to be but it really comes down to the situation. I just think it’s better if I look at the good in life or else I won't be able to...function. Too many negative and bad things that I've had to deal with and if I don't remain happy and think of the positive, I fear I would not be able to make it." Seiji confessed, being perfectly honest.

It caused his smile to drop a little but it soon came back when he wanted to assure her that there was nothing to worry about for him. "Plus I just remind myself someone out there probably had it worse off than me and that I need to be happy and confident in order for those I'm trying to help and make feel better, trust me, and actually feel better around me." Seiji added with his friendly smile ever present once more. How else was he supposed to live? He could not make people happy if he himself was always behaving in a depressed manner, people didn't want to be around that for too long. Everyone had their own struggles and someone had to be the bright light in the dark room, so why not him? He honestly enjoyed when people were happy around him and when he could help them, so why not make sure that even when he was hurting he still tried to show that kindness and happiness within him.

He looked at her and didn't say anything for a moment at her question, trying to figure out what hidden meaning she had by the way she asked her question. Normally he missed hidden meaning, but when it was something like this he felt like he could at least make a decent guess. Tamara had to have a child and was wondering if he would end up a mutant, that was his guess. "Well, no one can stop me from performing the test if I have a parent’s permission and we don't make a big show about it." Seiji informed her. It was not approved by higher ups, but if Tamara wanted him to go ahead and test what he was confident would work then he would do it. Her next question had him sitting back after ruffling his hair a few times. "See, that is where it gets a little complex. It does appear in the DNA but it...'hides'. If that makes sense. Like it honestly does come down to the ability that they could end up with." Seiji said, then figure he should just explain.

"Say I did the test on you and myself. Obviously it would come back that we were mutants. Yet for me it would not only be able to be figured out from a blood test, but also from a test on my skin do to the pheromones I give off; where for you it would be a blood test and possibly a hair sample. So that is to say, why it would still be detected in the blood, depending on the ability affects where it shows up clearly without having to really look for it. So for a test for a child who had not come into their powers, the more samples I have the better the chances of me being able to...find it. So blood, hair, skin, saliva, and even pee would all be great samples for me to test in order to tell you without a shadow of a doubt if they will be a mutant or not." Seiji informed her and then fell silent after feeling like he talked way too much. Information, it was a mouthful.

[Tamara Sulik]

Tamara was not a bad person. She would not hurt someone just because she wanted to hurt them. That being said, if pushed, she knew she could be cruel. She was not one of those people who believe she was incapable of murder. Threaten her son and you might see that she was very capable of it. She knew this gave her attenuating circumstances but that wouldn’t change what she would have done. She didn’t know if Seiji was the kind to believe he was able to kill. Maybe, since he had a scientific mind. But he also seemed to be very warm-hearted so he might believe it impossible. Who knows? This seriously was not something she would bother to put too many thoughts on.

“I get it,” she assured him as he tried to explain why he was a positive guy. “I guess I’m just too much of a realist for that. But there is nothing good in focusing on the negative of things.” he had a tough life too, at least she supposed so considering the few he told her. She had a few hardships too. Not along the lines of being adopted and rejected later by her adoptive family, but she had to work hard to get where she was and this made it impossible for her to really just focus on the good while ignoring the bad. He then pointed out someone must be living worse shit than he was. “You’re right. After all, no matter what you might have gone through, I’d say you made it out more than okay. Some don’t have that luck. Or think they don’t have it.” She was not the kind to help someone who refused to help themselves but she wouldn’t let anyone pity her when she knew she was, in the end, pretty lucky. A lot of things she did in the past could have gone terribly wrong. Seiji must be thinking something similar every time someone pitied him for whatever aspect of his life. Even if he had been bullied, he didn’t appear to her as if he tried for her to feel sorry for him. He grew over it. She bet he even had a better life than that bully for that reason.

She noticed the look she gave him after her question. He was trying to understand why she cared. She figured she might tell him at least that. “I have a son. Oh, you won’t be able to test anything on him though. Unless you can get someone to fly all the way to Serbia and ship the samples back in time for them to still be of use,” she quickly warned him after she confessed to having a child. He didn’t need to no more than that but since he might ask if he could try anything on him, she figured she better tell him it was not possible. It might have, were they in St Cadou, but it was not the case.

Something that hides. So the child appeared normal to anyone until it manifested. Or maybe they just didn’t find exactly where it was in the DNA until it showed up and was more evident? She had never been very good in science so she wouldn’t know if any of those possibilities made any sense. She listened to him, trying not to miss on the information but that was still a lot. “So, since your skin is now a bit different because of pheromones, you can see the mutation on it as well but since my power does not affect my skin, you wouldn’t see it on mine,” she said, trying to sum it up. She could understand it. “But wouldn’t your skin show a result only after your power showed up? Blood seems like the best guess.” Again, she was not entirely sure. He was the one who studied this, she did not. More samples to look for it made sense to her as well. More ground to cover, to be sure. It was still a lot to digest all at once.

[Seiji Lockard]

She said that she got it, so Seiji was not going to keep talking about it forever and ever. No point in talking someone’s ear of when they understood what you were getting at. Even if he already feared it was a bit too late in the whole 'talking her ear off' department. He could not help but to talk a lot or think a lot due to the way his mind worked. There was just so much to say, think about, and do that it was hard to try and contain himself from saying too much on a matter. He did try to not be too much of a pain to others, understanding that not everyone really cared about what someone was saying and were just being nice. He didn't get that feeling with Tamara, she actually seemed to care about what he had to say but that didn't change the fact that he still felt bad for talking so much.

"We all have our own way of dealing with things and keeping ourselves happy." Seiji responded when she spoke of how she was too much of a realist. Nothing was wrong with that. A part of him envied that she could at least seem happy and still be realistic. It sometimes felt like he had to lie to himself and 'live in another world' in order to feel happy and like he was actually making a difference. He did wonder form time but that was why he kept himself so busy in order to avoid moments when he was sitting there doing nothing. "Thanks, I like to think that way too. That and well we are all in charge of how we feel about things. I think people forget to just look within themselves and to actually think about something to understand how well they have it or how life is not all that bad at times." Seiji added after her words.

Yet again he felt like he was talking too much but his coffee was all gone by this time so he had nothing to feel his mouth with in order to at least give some more pauses before his moments of speaking. It was not like he liked to hear himself speak or anything, it was just getting all of it out there. Onto the talk about being able to tell if someone would be a mutant before they came into their powers and the reveal that she had a son. Wow, he would not have guessed that. Now he had more questions but didn't feel like any of them were appropriate so remained silent and just listened as she explained her situation. She didn't see of there being a way to test him, but she was very wrong about that, epically when she was telling this to Seiji of all people.

He was about to say as much but then she was trying to put together and understand what he had told her about his test and why it was best to test multiple areas. She was on the right track for the most part, but he figured it was best to say just a little bit more so she fully understood. "What you are saying is exactly why it is a bit complex to point out and why it’s best to have multiple samples to check for. The mutant gene itself is known for a fact to appear in everyone that has some mutant DNA in their line. So in normal testing the child appears just like anyone else, that is why this test is unique in a way. It pinpoints those genes that will actually become active." Seiji said, then stopped as he felt like he was about to talk a lot but it was best to get it all out there and give an example.

"Say you had two kids. Both of them would have the 'mutant gene', but that does not mean it would become active in either of them, could just effect one of them, or not effect anyone in your family until their kids. So the test allows us to find the gene, but also see if it will become active or dormant and that is done by just seeing how that specific gene is reacting. As we were saying for my example, it is true the gene in my skin would only show up when I came into my power, but I would be able to tell that it was going to show up in my skin just from the test. I'm sorry that this is probably confusing. Most of it is theory based on certain testing so I'm not fully sure the easiest and simplest way to explain it." Seiji said, taking a break from his talking and explaining for a moment. Man, talking science was not as easy as thinking about it was. "As for your son, I could do the test on him if you gave me permission and told me specifically where he is." Seiji added, since that was also very important to point out.

[Tamara Sulik]

Tamara was like this. She could not help it nor change that. It was not like she only dwelled on the bad aspects of life, she could see the good too. But she could not only see the good part either. That might make her sound like she tried to ‘rain on one’s parade’ but it was something she couldn’t help doing so. Life was not a party, there were lots of hardships. And if she wanted to get over them, she needed to locate them before she hit them hard.

Tamara believed she was a survivor but not for the same reasons as she would call Seiji that. Obviously, she never went through the same things he did. She had her parents, who loved her still and she loved them. She just lived in a place that was really not suiting her nature. And married some random guy just so she could make it to the States. But that was still not what she’d call hardships, not compared to what he might have lived. She nodded at his words. She did not him for a very long time but she already understood he was the kind of person to be positive all the time and to try to see the good in everything. It was something she could expect him to say.

She knew it might come as a surprise, if not a shock, to hear she had a son. First, because he was not around but also because she didn’t think she had this motherly vibe around her. Then again, she was not sure what a mother was supposed to look like, really. She had never been very conventional so she was not surprised if she didn’t exactly looked the part. Then again, she never thought she’d ever pay attention to a lesson about genetics. Yet here she was, listening to Seiji who clearly knew what he was talking about. Or knew how to make it appear so. “I see. So my son could technically carry the gene in him but it could remain dormant all of his life?” She sighed at that. She never really thought about it, or the fact that he could have no power at all. She did not recall his father to have any, but they never really bothered discussing this so who knows. That added to the complications and she didn’t really like to think her idea of having him sent to Bellefonte might never occur.

He apologized for how confusing this all must be to her. She shook her head at that. “I asked. Sure, I might not have understood everything but I supposed I got enough. It isn’t exactly my area of expertise, unlike you,” she assured him, giving Seiji a little smile at that. She was surprised when he said he could go and test her son. “I had no idea the samples could still be viable if sent here or did you intend to go in the middle of Serbia’s countryside?” she asked him. It would definitely be an amusing image. She wasn’t quite sure they’d seen an Asian guy in real before. “It’s something that needs a bit more reflection though.” And discussion with her family.