Or did you cook up something new to torment the universe’s vain protestations of impossibility with? Who: Robert and Rosalind Lutece and Bruce Banner Where: The think tank space he is currently working at What: The Luteces recruit Bruce to help them perform an experiment. When: Recently Warnings/Rating: PG Status complete
Rosalind and Robert were chatting the whole way up to Bruce Banner’s office. The looks of annoyance on the faces of their companions in the elevator were lost on the pair, they were so deep in discussion.
“Really, Robert, you can’t say for certain that this will be productive. I would like it to be so, but this collaboration thing is really beginning to get on my nerves.” Rosalind said, with some exasperation as they made their way to the office door.
“You know it’s a necessity, and you were the one talking about how our ideas would never be tested as vigorously as possible if we were the only ones testing them.” He replied, his tone good natured.
Rosalind knocked on the door, “We’ll see, I suppose.”
Bruce snatched open the door, peered in, and then blinked. “Rosalind, Robert?” He eyed them suspiciously. “This isn’t about the quantum singularity particle stimulator, is it?” He’d had enough free ion particles in his office for one day. “Or did you cook up something new to torment the universe’s vain protestations of impossibility with?”
He was luckily finishing up his work for the day quite earlier than expected. And his project for it. He could package it up and send it off tomorrow. He had been pondering calling Jean, but now he was curious…
“Nothing is impossible,” Rosalind began,
Robert seamlessly joined in with, “Only varying degrees of unlikely. It’s good to see you again, Bruce. and yes, it’s about the simulator.”
“We think we’ve worked out our error. It turns out Robert was right about the velocity after all.” Rosalind said it without any real irritation or annoyance. She wasn’t going to hold his being right against him.
“We’d like to give you the new value and ask you to set the test up again.” Robert noted.
Bruce raised his eyebrows and grinned at them. Their wordplay was no weirder than Richards’ idle chatter about atoms talking to him, so Bruce didn’t mind it. He eyed them and then slowly hmmed.
“I’d be glad to. The main lab space is, I think, open in a half hour. Just enough time to start treking things over for the test.” he nodded again, his mind already spinning up to the specifics. “I imagine you found something new to run the test on?” ‘ “Yes,” Rosalind began.
“It was my idea.” Robert supplemented.
“You got it from someone else, so you don’t get to take credit.” Rosalind replied.
Robert grinned at her. “Do too.”
She grinned back. “We’re hoping to test hydrogen atoms this time. Something simpler and smaller.”
“Seems obvious, in hindsight.” Robert pointed out.
“And yet you still said carbon first.” Rosalind reminded him.
Bruce watched them, with a smile and a chuckle. “Then let’s go talk to supply and convince them to loan us some and collect them from storage. That should take us into the time we can use the lab during.” He eyed them, and nodded. His excitement was starting to grow.
Rosalind and Robert turned to face him and nodded. “That sounds like a good plan.” Rosalind said.
“How have you been, Bruce?” Robert supplemented.
Bruce led the way, and nodded as he was asked. “I’ve been good. Mostly working, and poking at friends, and finding somehow romance has crept into my life.” He offered it offhandedly.
Rosalind sighed, and Robert chuckled. They both spoke at once.
Rosalind said, “Oh, Bruce, I thought you were better than that.”
And Robert said, “She must be an interesting woman, then.”
Bruce snerked and shook his head. “She is brilliant. And I am better than ever, you two. As a wise man once said, there is more under heaven and earth than fits in your philosophy.” He paused. “Or something like that.”
"I'm not sure Shakespeare counts as wise." Rosalind noted.
"It's not our philosophy, really. Romance can be a distraction." Robert supplemented.
"He also said, 'Love makes fools of us all'." Rosalind pointed out.
"But there's no reason not to enjoy it while you have it. It could be an inspiration." Robert said, nudging his sister lightly with his elbow.
“He does and he does not. It is and it is not. He did, but he had no truth of it. And I will, or I wont.”
Bruce smirked as he led the way toward supply, and sighed at the idea of the coming annoying conversation with the supply steward.
Robert and Rosalind gave each other significant looks. “I told you he was better than you thought.” Robert said, sounding smug.
“Did not.” Rosalind started.
“Did too.”
They continued in that vein for about ten feet, then mutually huffed, took a step, and laughed, turning to smirk at each other.
And Bruce? Bruce was just helplessly laughing. And internally calculating the time until he had to come rescue them from jail after someone tried to kill them for their annoying habits and they effortlessly stopped them, cold. A few minutes of arguing with supply master Goerges led to them wheeling out a tray of parts and with two special units containing preserved hydrogen.
“Same timing sequence as before, or will you use a new timing to match the new substance?” They had to go by the Lutece’s lab to collect the heart of their machine for the test, so he headed that way first.
The Luteces smiled. They both liked Bruce. Rosalind thought he was a very levelheaded man who had not yet lost his desire for knowledge above all else. Robert thought he was probably the most interesting scientist they’d ever met. Though they rarely agreed on why, they almost always agreed on what. In both their books Bruce was a good man.
The pair led the way to their office. “No, though hydrogen is quite a bit lighter our new speed is slower, so the two should cancel each other out.” The pair said in unison.
“Good. That can work.” He waited while they opened the door and maneuvered the tray cart in to help if he could load their devices on it. The Luteces were an amazing couple of brainiacs and scientists. Nice and kind, too. He was glad he knew them.
They nodded and began to set up the machine in silence. The time for talking was over, the time for science was now. They moved like a well oiled machine: always in motion, and never in each other’s way.
He prepped the hydrogen and set everything down, then moved back and began the timer. “Okay. T-minus two minutes.”
The Luteces took their places, pulling Bruce’s monitor up for him. “This better work, Robert.” Rosalind said as she started recording her screen.
“I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.” Robert assured her.
And as the countdown came into focus, Bruce nodded. “And...now!” He flicked the power to full, and shunted the protection field to maximum even as he kept the airflow of the room and the experiment space even and cool. And his eyes were pinned to the space where, for a moment, a hydrogen atom was let free and then the machine activated…
There was a moment of tension, and then the readings came out on the screen. Rosalind and Robert bent down to study them intently. They didn’t celebrate outright, but they did smile widely, and give each other significant looks across the room.
“It worked,” They said to each other, smiling brightly.
Bruce whooped, as he restarted the activation, and ran it three more times, and each time, the board came up green. Then he slowly fixed things down into safe mode and turned to them. “You did it, lady and gentleman. You did it. Congratulations.”
They smiled at him, both looking quite smug. “Of course.” Rosalind said with a laugh.
“We would have gotten it eventually.”
“Thank you for your help, Doctor Banner.”
“We’re going dash off to our lab and put the readings into our experiment, now.”
“Do have a good evening.”
“You’re welcome. And of course. I’ll have my own report for the addendum by tonight.” He tipped his head to them and then grinned as he filled out a clean up report and headed to his lab, whistling. This had been fun! He wondered what havoc the two would get into next! ~fin~