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"Oh nonsense," the professor immediately denied, "Even the traits that may be flaws for your parents prove to be helpful assets to you and your siblings. You are all perfect the way you are, and that's that." He was being very stubborn about it, a crystal clear depiction of one of Grayson's less than positive personality traits that Dea had only seconds ago mentioned she had inherited. Nix could be heard snickering about it in the background, for Dea had certainly hit the nail on the head, and hard. He continued, still stringent on his opinion of the matter, "Anyone would be nervous about telling a parent bad news like that. I know you feel uneasy about so many people doting on you to help you get better, which... hmm..." Okay, so that was another trait that could be considered negative, in some cases, but the fact of the matter remained, "Humility isn't a bad thing, and you still managed to work around it. I think that is very admirable of you."

"Thank you, Dea!" Nix replied with a sigh of relief. Grayson twitched at the insinuation that his blood-related assistant had a great enough imagination to be able to picture the man in a dress, but shook his head. Nix was having much too much fun keeping this conversation going as it was, and tried to hide the smirk, "Pink is definitely not your color, sir."

Terpsichore rocked herself back and forth, hands folded behind the small of her back in an effort to keep from getting too tensed. "At least they caught it early," she stated, though she was unsure if it was the type of illness that could benefit from the speed of a diagnosis or not, "That must have been so frightening for her parents, for their child to be acting off. Can you imagine?" Terp certainly couldn't, but she didn't know what it would have been like for a good friend of her's to undergo the same, either. After all, it still didn't seem real to her, but she knew it was just the shock of it all. She smiled at Eilam's agreement on her recovery, feeling a bit better now that he seemed to be less pessimistic on the subject; that meant her assumptions were not unfounded, and she could rest a bit easier, "That's right. She's such a sweetheart, I would probably do the same for her." The shroomish-girl giggled at the response to her 'cousin' label on the arceus-boy, "Oh I probably won't call you that. It feels a bit strange to be calling someone that when they're not blood relation, let alone when I've only been part of this little family for but a handful of months. I still only consider the other pokémon I stay with as 'teammates,' not siblings." Still, she already did feel like she was part of it, and as much as she would have liked to have believed the contrary, it would be kind of weird to have a crush on a cousin, even if it was more like one on an adopted cousin...

<<Ohhh....>> Karma paused to think on that, and seemed to be thinking on it unusually hard before popping zher head back upright, <<That sounds like something fun to do, to teach someone to do things the right way when they've made a mistake!>> Karma's inner cogs were already turning, imagining some pokémon with a Zorro-style mask and cape on, scouring the streets with a teacher's yardstick, and the ditto giggled gleefully. However, with the mention of how Lucinda was changed into her current form, Karma's confusion could be clearly seen bleeding across zher facial expression, <<I thought... stars were really huge! Are they actually small enough to throw at someone? And who would throw something like that at you, anyway! How rude! I hope you weren't hurt!>> Karma tapped a gelatin tendril to zher cheek a couple of times, <<What did you help the dogs with?>> Well wasn't all this intriguing!

Grayson harrumphed, keeping his back to Nix as he grumbled under his breath to Dea, "Just ignore him. Maybe he'll go away if we pretend we don't see him." This tactic worked with wild animals, didn't it? One shouldn't encourage bad behavior like this anyway. Filing the subject away, the older man grinned at Dea's explanation on the subject of flaws and assets, perking, "Yes, that's exactly it! It all depends on your perceptions of such traits, and how you utilize their potential. Even the worst of things can be manipulated into working for the better, if only you try." He gave a nod, so sure of the statement, that he hoped that Dea may catch on and realize this went both ways -- her illness could be used to strengthen her own willpower and spirit in this respect as well. Of course, he wasn't going to outright say that, at least right now; it was a bit too sensitive of a subject at the moment. He snickered at his daughter's verbal ribbing of the arceus-boy, but offered the teen a thankful nod, "Well, I would have to agree that he certainly knew best. Just remember that you shouldn't feel nervous about coming to family for help or, well... especially good news!" He was beaming until the mention of pink brought about a more horrified look, "Aww, not you, too!" Glancing down at his current choice of dress, he mused on the subject, deciding maybe it was better to just go with the flow this time, "Hmm, you may be right... I think a cooler color would work better. Purple?"

Nix couldn't hold it together either, finding it just a bit bewildering to hear the older man deciding to go along with the teasing. He was almost balled over and found it a bit difficult to breathe for a few seconds. After a moment, he managed to sputter between gasps, "Oh the horror!" Once he was able to stand more upright once again, he continued while rubbing at an eye, "Purple is... better on you, I suppose!"

"Oh yeah, I forgot, you would have been there when all that had happened the first time," Terpsichore attempted to smile, but it didn't really visibly show on her face. It tended to be a bit difficult to realize that some turned pokémon were once adult before the transformation occurred. Or... ageless, as it seemed Eilam was. "Well she's lucky to have so many people looking out for her. I mean, you've been with her so long, you must know just about all of the ins and outs of her illness and how to deal with the symptoms as they come up. Even though they probably didn't let you in the doctor's office when they were explaining everything and doing any tests... at least before you turned more, um, human," she discussed before she realized she was rambling again. Terpsichore always did tend to talk over her own strong emotions, almost as a way of forgetting or dealing with them. Her smile returned when the topic of all the good Dea's managed to accomplish came up, "Well, with her passion for what she does, I'm sure even she's realized what she's capable of doing and how it affects others. I would sure hope she gets thanked for it, every once in a while!" The shroomish tapped a finger to her jaw line in thought, "You have a point there, I forgot some people do that. It's actually kind of sweet, and I'm sure those friends just adore gaining a niece or nephew! Alright, then I think I will keep calling you that, then, Cous!" She giggled and jabbed him lightly in the side with an elbow, playfully.

Karma nodded vigorously, <<I completely agree! That's how young pokémon and children learn best, isn't it? And they never really outgrow that, at least around people they admire or respect. I've noticed that in some stories I read, but I haven't really observed it. So it's true!>> Zhe was a bit glad such stories, most of which zhe could barely remember, weren't lying to zher about the complexities of a living organism's nature. The ditto blinked, the little gears in zher mind plugging along and trying to imagine it all, <<Oh, created? So you mean they're like little meteors? Or... what do they look like? I hope it didn't hurt too badly when it hit you!>> It would have been rude for the jirachi to throw something so painfully at someone! Karma gazed in awe as Lucy explained what had happened, <<Oh wow! Are you a psychic type, then? Or... oh, what do they call it... Ah well, I can't remember. That's so cool! It must have been so exciting! It would be like being on a real adventure, helping someone against a villain!>> The ditto bounced in place excitedly, always thinking that something like that would be an occurrence most thrilling indeed. <<Ah, you mean it wasn't the jirachi who threw the star at you in the first place? Well, why did she do that? It's so mean!>> zhe sputtered with a sad pout.

Grayson could tell that Dea was having a slightly difficult time in seeing the good that everything could do, but he knew enough about his daughter to know that she could find a lot of good in most. However, he was also fairly certain that if she found time to contemplate it further, some day she may be able to see the threads that made up the positives in those that she could see and tie them to those she couldn't, perhaps finding the optimism in poorer situations. She was a very strong woman, and Grayson wasn't entirely sure if this strength would have emerged so forcefully without the determination she used to see her illness through. Maybe she wasn't physically strong, but on the matters of heart, she was a league above anyone else the doctor knew. He snickered at her thanks, "Well, it doesn't sound like I need to beat anybody up for you, and there is nothing that would make me think less of you. Maybe the doctors that treat you... but not you personally. I just have to keep reminding you of that, don't I?" He mused on that note, "Remind you, just like you need to remind me of a lot of things..."

"No, Doctor, I think that's just you going senile in your old age. Dea's not that bad yet," Nix jabbed. He really couldn't seem to keep his sarcasm turned off at the moment...

Terpsichore offered a soft smile at Eilam's flustered behavior, "There's no need to apologize, I know it must be really stressful, especially for those that are with her all the time! The important thing is to remember that things can -- no, will get better. Alright now?" Her smile came easier, as long as she kept that belief as well. It had happened numerous times before, at least, so it wasn't difficult to imagine. "She's got such a wonderful and supportive family, doesn't she?" the shroomish giggled, glad that so many individuals were willing to go out of their way for her. After all, she knew there were those that weren't so lucky, so she was happy to note that Dea was not in the same predicament. "Well, you can't expect everyone to realize and thank her. It's good that some do, however, and say so! Ah, speaking of which... let her know that I thank you all, too? For being such great friends," she asked, slightly bashfully. Had she said that before? If not... well, she felt horrible about the thought of potentially forgetting to have done so in the past! She giggled at Eilam's warning, quickly retracting her elbow from his personal space, "Aww, but I was only teasing!"

Karma nodded gravely, as unfortunate an aspect of society it happened to be where younger generations followed poorly-devised guidelines, even though the ditto was known for doing the same sort of thing on a much milder scale, <<You know a great deal about the subject, did you have any experience in it at all?>> The formless pokémon seemed to be forgetting that zhe was determined to make it look like this wasn't the first time the two of them had met, but there was still a good chance the putty pokémon had not made a misstep. Agreeing, Karma flopped the top of zher body back and forth, as though bowing to a superior, <<Yes! I will do my best when around the impressionable folk!>> The ditto's eyes glimmered at the thought of a more "real" paper star, <<So it's like a little gemstone? And is it as hard as one, too?>> Zhe was full of so many questions! <<I'm glad she didn't give you a goose egg! That's... what those large bumps on the head are called, right? Such a weird name...>> zhe giggled, before continuing on less of a tangent, <<Oh! I didn't realize you actually WERE a psychic type! What's it like? Do you see things like that a lot? That's so cool! Was it hard to get used to being a... a hybrid, is that what you called it? Or even a human, was that hard?>> Lucy was so fascinating to Karma, zhe was almost forgetting zher place.

"Oh, it's the same thing," Grayson insisted, "It's the same thing, but with a different spin. You forget that we will help you no matter what the circumstance, as we have done in the past." He was being so matter-of-fact about it that his stubbornness was shining though quite brilliantly. Nix raised an eyebrow at his near contradiction of himself, but thought it best to refrain from making another joke, considering it was a more serious moment that would have been dampened that way. "I think the main difference is that we both forget things about what we are otherwise really good at," Grayson considered, "I forget things that should be more systematic... while you forget things that should be more psychological. Or maybe I'm looking too far into it... but it sounds to me like you've gotten some of both your mother and I in that thought progression." He grinned mischievously at that, though was unsure at how successful he may have been about twisting the idea around; Nix just snorted in amusement. The older scientist thought about someone giving Dea a crooked glance, his eyes narrowing and expression growing dark, "If they know what's good for them, they'd better not be giving you any funny looks!" No, truthfully he probably would not resort to such brutish manners, but the temptation wasn't so forgiving. He waved a hand, landing on indicating the three pokémon that Dea had helping her, "Well you'd better request your pokémon help you make it more fun! I'm sure they could manage such a request, eh? Like helping make chores fun."

"Physical therapy is a chore at times," Nix interjected. He could never help but feel sorry for everything Dea had to keep going through, just to have a semi-normal atmosphere in her life. He could identify that it was easy to take his normal routines for granted otherwise.

Terpsichore nodded, agreeing that one good turn deserved another. Regardless, even if there had been no equal reciprocation, she felt that they all deserved at least as much as they got through the support of family and friends, even if they weren't able to do anything in return. They were all just so sweet! "Well when you put it that way, I don't think any of you would really let anything bad happen!" she giggled, though it helped to ease the rest of her uncertainty on the matter. "She must definitely be doing things right in this world to have so many people devoted to her," the shroomish pointed out, though was mentally trying to figure out what that special something was only to come up empty again and again. Terpsichore snickered as Eilam received her thanks, "Well even if I did thank you before, I also don't want you guys to forget it! Maybe you can even think of it as me thanking you for all the people who forgot to." She seemed slightly taken aback by the fact that Eilam was teasing, quirking an eyebrow in playful taunt, "Oh really? Sounds like you're starting to open up more to that sort of thing. That's great to hear!"

<<Ahh, I have only been able to read about some of it,>> Karma noted, as though sifting through pages of files in zher head, <<Even then, I don't find a lot on it. There's not a whole lot of reading material in the laboratory that isn't... boring science-y reports.>> The ditto frowned at the thought, remembering the many times Grayson had told the blobby pokémon to put the papers down before zhe had ever really found anything interesting in them. It wasn't like zhe was going to accidentally put the pages in the paper shredder! <<Oooh...>> Karma gawked, <<I wonder if I'll ever get to see a star like that. They sound so pretty!>> Granted, gemstones were pretty in themselves; so many colors of the rainbow, and they were all underground! It was so fascinating. The ditto nodded, trying to absorb the information as best as possible, <<Hmm, okay, 'bumps' it is! Well I'm glad it didn't injure you!>> Zhe considered what it would be like to be a psychic type, especially with a convenience like long-distant conversation, <<So you could be like a ninja, if you really wanted! That's pretty cool. Can you read other peoples' thoughts, too? Aren't they afraid you might find something out you're not suppose to? Like a surprise party!>> Karma didn't really know the limitations of Lucy's psychic ability, after all. <<It doesn't happen often, but you at least still knew it wasn't a regular dream sort of thing, right? How did you know? What other sorts of things do you normally see?>> Karma asked, not realizing zhe was practically interrogating at this point, a trait the ditto must have learned from zher trainer. Zhe smiled when Lucy had mentioned that Dea helped her cope with being partially human as well as hybridized; it was just like zher own trainer!

There was almost, almost a hint of a pout on Grayson's face as Dea concluded that she was not swayed by the scientist's twisting of logic on the matter, but Nix didn't hesitate to offer an amused chuckle at her eloquent dropping of the subject. "Well... at least there's that. You do carve your own path, after all. Even though there are clearly some similarities in the way we act, you are still your own person," Grayson conceded with a quirked smile and a shrug. He nodded as she elaborated about the way his daughter feared others may see her, understanding, "It's hard, and there will always be those that see things like that, but unfortunately it can't be helped. As long as they don't make things any more difficult for my little girl." His gaze narrowed, trying to be more comical as he glared at nothing in particular. "Hmm..." he pondered on the idea for a moment, "Maybe promising to do something if you finish all your chores, or make it into some sort of counting game. They're resourceful, I'm sure they can come up with something more imaginative." He reached over to lightly ruffle Dea's hair, "Looks like all this excitement has you drained. I don't want to keep you longer than you should stay; you need your rest if you want to properly recover, and you've got another to think about as well! We can always continue with the conversation later."

Nix scuffed a boot into the tiled floor, noting that he was guilty of feeling sorry for Dea as well. He didn't think the notion could be helped, however, considering it felt like there was nothing he could do to help. Maybe bring some soup over at some point... but he was a terrible cook, and he didn't want to inadvertently make his cousin feel worse.

Terpsichore snickered at Eilam's strength of words, tempted to nudge him again with her elbow, "Well you sound fairly confident. I'm sure if anyone could protect Dea from the bad things of the world, at least on the outside, it would be you. That would help her recover faster as well, I would think!" She mulled it over; certainly a pokémon of legendary status had the facilities to orchestrate such apt shielding capabilities, much easier than those of lesser status such as herself. Did Eilam do a lot of training, then? "Well, you both do your best to better the world, I think that's very admirable; not everyone can, or feels like they can make much of a difference!" she stated with a nod before giggling, "Well I will thank you all a hundred times over for everyone who didn't, if I need to!" The shroomish kept her cheerful demeanor now that the darkness had passed from the conversation, "That's very good of you to do. Some might think you've got some confidence in your abilities now!" It was a small joke, and she indicated this with a wink; she knew he was more confident than he let on before as well.

Karma seemed to chirp in excitement at Lucy's suggestion of bringing books, <<Oh I would love that! I love reading! It's such a great way to get so much information about the outside world, and others' imagination, and and...>> Zhe flailed little gelatinous limbs, <<I-If you wouldn't mind me borrowing them, I would love to. Maybe something spanning the spectrum like that?>> While the ditto was certain that that wasn't a very helpful suggestion, zhe had no idea how to narrow the selection down. Zhe considered the idea of little gemstone-like stars, <<So... does that mean that they are common?>> Maybe they didn't used to be, but if they were frequently-occurring now, maybe that had changed. The small pokémon snickered at the theming that Lucinda was getting into, but had to agree with the hybrid child, <<Yeah, I think a princess would suit you better as well. It's good that you can control your psychic abilities like that, I would think it would be hard to get along with some people if you couldn't! Some people can be so mean...>> Karma seemed to pout a little at the thought, but the telepathic dream sequence that Lucy was describing was too interesting, <<Instinct! No, wait that's not quite the right word... ah, intuition! Or was it just too real compared to the other dreams? Do you get to see other legendary pokémon a lot in your dreams?>>

Grayson chuckled at Dea's response to other peoples' pity, but shook his head a few times, "I'm not so sure. You're more of a go-getter, you sure you wouldn't actually try doing something about it instead of just pitying a person?" It was meant as more of a razz, considering one couldn't always tell how one would act under impossible-to-replicate scenario, and nodded to recant his previous statement to indicate that she didn't need to supply an answer for the question. "It is, at least, good to know that some people recognize the hardship and can empathize, even if it can wear on a person," the older scientist agreed. Grinning, Grayson tipped forward and offered his daughter another hug, "You can bet it's a promise. You get yourself some rest, and let me know when we should schedule to meet up again. Even dropping in is fine with me; you're always a ray of sunshine in this dingy place."

"At least nobody ends up being a jerk to you as often if they feel sorry for your predicament," Nix offered with a grin, though he hardly missed the point that Dea was initially trying to make. He sighed and ran a hand through his short hair, but didn't feel the need to admit that he was guilty of the same sort of pity-driven feelings when it came to his cousin -- it seemed that she already at least partially understood that. With a flick of the fingers to make for a wave, he responded in turn, "It was good to see you again, Dea. Take care of yourself, and hopefully I can see you again before it's been another couple of years, eh?" Granted... that last comment was his own fault, but he thought it couldn't hurt to put it on the table, so to speak.

Terpsichore's grin didn't falter, but she was definitely curious as to what sort of skills Eilam practiced so often that could be of help. Now that she thought about it, she didn't even know what sort of abilities those were. She tapped an index finger to her lips in thought on the matter, but decided to go ahead and ask, "What sort of skills? Come to think of it, I don't even know what type you are, of pokémon." She giggled, "You and me both. Or, well... I suppose most people in this room for sure! If everyone keeps trying, maybe we can make some impact on the world in a positive way!" The optimism she was once again displaying was indicative of her uplifted demeanor, back to her normally perky self. Blinking, Terpsichore glanced to Dea and then back to Eilam before she remembered the telepathic link that they had mentioned before, and she pounded a fist into her palm in understanding, "Oh! Ah, alright, that's fine; she needs her rest if she's to get better, after all! It was great seeing you, I hope to see you again soon! Hehe, you'd better get Dea to someplace more comfortable to rest, the poor thing!"

Karma wiggled in place giddily, thinking of all the variation in reading material zhe was to experience the next time the two of them met, <<Oh I look forward to it! So exciting! And there's so much else we could talk about as well! Oh, I'll be very careful with the books, too, there's no need to worry! The doctor might tease about it, but I've not actually destroyed any records or books or anything like that...>> As thought to make the point clearer, the ditto held up an appendage used as an arm, <<See, I'm not actually goopy or anything, so I don't leave myself everywhere. I'm more solid than that!>> Zhe continued hopping around in place as zhe thought about all the places zhe would now have to look for where a star might show up, not because zhe grew tired of being a full-fledged pokémon, but because it seemed so interesting. <<Well the princess will set those mean people straight, then!>> Karma stated with a playful harrumph before giggling as Lucy tried responding to all zher other questions, <<I'm sorry for asking so much. That's really cool, how you can do all that!>> Karma perked as Lucy mentioned the time, and then eyes went wide at the mention of Grayson's relation to Dea, <<DAUGHTER!?>> There was a forced cough and Karma's expression seemed to fizzle once more into sadness, realizing zhe just blew zher cover about remembering past interaction -- at least, most probably blew it. <<Aww, well... I'll see you again soon, right? You're so nice, and I like it when nice people come to visit...>> zhe pouted.

Grayson snickered at Dea's response, glad to note that although his daughter was feeling under the weather, she still had not lost any of her pep. "I look forward to that, and your mother would most certainly enjoy your company as well," he agreed, lightly tousling her hair and releasing his grip on her. He was definitely not against his daughter's visits becoming more frequent, and although that meant that his wayfaring daughter was not going to be able to travel as often as she may have liked, at least there was some upside to the situation. "You get your energy up before we go making any plans like that, Sunshine," he laughed, helping rotate her wheelchair so that she nor her pokémon had to wrestle with it.

Nix's expression split into a grin, nodding to concede to Dea's order. "Well, I'm up here about once every few months, so if you stick around, you're sure to see me more often," he explained with a light half-shrug, "Otherwise, I don't have any idea of where I'll be sent off before I'm given the word. I wouldn't skip out on it if I was given the choice, though, so tell your father here to ask for reports more often, hm?" The researcher smirked, liking that plan, and turned to the shroomish that was under his care in a bit of surprise. Huh... seems she had met them before. He could work with more reasons to visit, that way!

Terpsichore giggled at Eilam's attempt at explaining his type, finding it amusing that he didn't seem to know the specifics even though she was fairly certain it was just because they were running short on time and that the arceus teen wasn't positive the shroomish would fully grasp the concept. Either -- or both -- were probably accurate. "Plates, huh? Maybe you could show me sometime, in that case," she offered, a bit confused but curious nonetheless. She didn't want to hold things up, though, and walked toward Dea so that Eilam could head in that direction as well, "Hehe, he'd better! You guys take care of her, and yourselves as well!" Beaming, she waved to Dea as well, "You take care of yourself, and I will see you again, 'kay?" They always managed to put her in such a good mood.

Karma grinned, squishing zhimself into a more contracted shape, <<Aww, you're too kind! I just wanted to let you know I'd be extra, extra careful with them!>> Pumping a little arm-like limb into the air, Karma seemed excited, <<Yes, you show those mean people the what-for without having to result to their tactics! How a princess does it best!>> Zhe was glad the multitude of questions were not annoying Lucinda, but still held off on asking what exactly 'triplets' were; she seemed to be in a bit of a rush, after all. Waving both appendages, Karma gleefully accepted the terms of their departure, <<Okay, good! Then you be safe, and I will see you soon!>> It didn't seem to register that, the next time they met, Karma would hardly have any recollection of the events that happened, but at least the ditto was ecstatic about it in the meantime.