Warmed by Elijah's affection, Grendel almost felt herself (that pronoun was becoming more familiar) blushing.  That wasn't the only change that had begun.<strong>"Oh, I can tell,"</strong>she said to Eli's greeting,<strong>"and soon enough you will notice how glad <em>all </em>of me is to see you." </strong>She hugged Eli in the manner of good friends but made sure to slightly grind the areas of her that would have slight curves later discreetly into him.  It was a kind of promise for the future.<br/><br/>That done, Grendel extended her gloved hand to Max.  The gloves were a protection for them both although they might have seemed standoffish to those who didn't suspect why.  She hoped the handshake was warm enough to convey her real pleasure at meeting someone new.  Each stranger was a new universe in a way few of them would ever know.<br/><br/>But there was some slight disappointment upon closer inspection. Maxine, despite her unisexable name, was a healthy female, too well-developed to have Grendel's random 'flexibility'.  She was born as Nature intended, not made in a lab.<strong>"Max, then." </strong>Grendel looked away to hide her envy.<br/><br/>Grendel disengaged herself as soon as politeness would allow.  Where was that darned cat, she wondered.<strong>"Ah, should have rescued a dog, <em>they </em>do what they are told."</strong>she muttered to herself.  Given time, they would find Cat.  A can of Terran tuna would locate her for sure.  But a starship could be a dangerous place for a dumb animal and even smart humans.  There was a faster way.<br/><br/>Grendel had been concentrating on suppressing what some called her 'gifts' outside the ship.  But here a simple search for life could only go so far wrong, even for a unstable psion.  She closed her eyes and allowed her inner senses free reign...<br/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide</div><div class="spoiler_body">1. Again, sorry for the delay.  Assume that Grendel has been cordial and friendly to all new and old friends barring a very unlikely reason not to be, even if I have been too slow to specifically express this for her.<br/><br/>2. If Chanticleer would like, Grendel's comments about a dog's 'docility' could be overheard by Greg's powerful hearing, leading to a fun awkward scene.<br/><br/>3. Grendel is using Life Detection to sense Cat.  More than the rules allow, Grendel is a very unstable psionic.  So she can still fail if it serves Lizzie's plot.  Grendel does not yet know about the dark psionic echoes of the fomer Captain's Quarters and she has opened her naked mind to it (if this serves Lizzie's purposes).<br/><br/>At 2018-04-13 23:28:53, Dream Lover (uid: 58830) rolls: 2d6a1 Result: 12 (https://elliquiy.com/forums/dicebot.php?r=117638)<br/><br/>Success, as far as the dice can say.  But who knows just <em>what </em>Grendel has reached in the dark...?  I think two points of psionic strength expended should cover the ship.<br/></div></div><br/>