[Twinflame]

"Perhaps not so precisely as numeration and measurement," Dhein paced around the opposite side of the plant, so that he was directly in front of Antimony, even if the shrub was between them. "The manner of experimentation I did in the past was just so, though, for once one exceeds the limits of the Arcane the rules that once governed magic become merely suggestion. If I were to guess, I would say this plant falls into a similar vein." He turns his gaze on the blank walls of the room around them, trying to imagine it filled with items of magical research. "I have supplies in my old lab in Corin's Crossing which could be used to compare this plant's energies to those of Fel, Arcane, and potentially other energies which we could manipulate. The Light, for instance."

[Naunet]

The shadows beneath the plant's leaves and that stretched towards its central stalk seemed deeper than those in the rest of the room. They were bottomless and with a certain gravity to them that dragged on her. The yellow glow of her eyes flickered. "Transporting those supplies would be useful, then. We will require a number of foci through which to standardize the manipulations. Would your supplies include those as well?" It occurred to her that, given what she knew of what had occurred at Corin's Crossing, at any other time she would likely harbor much greater hesitation at making use of such things. But necessity pushed at her thoughts, and the shadows pulled them further. She lifted her eyes past the plant towards Dhein.

[Twinflame]

"Any foci I had in Corin's Crossing would have deteriorated, either by misuse or simply time." The Blood Elf crossed his arms, green eyes glowing brightly in the dim light of the room. His tone became serious, but the words came easily, the subject rising out of his distant history to fill his thoughts with unexpected ease. "At any rate, if we really want to be thorough, we can craft the foci ourselves from items that any Elven or Forsaken Arcanist will have in ready supply. Each different kind of magic will require a personal touch. Fel and Arcane magics use slightly different runic languages, for instance, but this should not affect results. We will need to obtain a common medium which all kinds of magic can affect in the same way, however. Such a thing is easy to come by for Fel and Arcane. Wood burns the same no matter which school of magic summons the fire. Light may complicate things a bit, though."

[Naunet]

"Its nature is different from the such schools. It burns, but selectively." And painfully. She shifted her fingers across her notes in uncomfortable thought. "I have characterized no specific runic shapes or summonings that bring it forth, but rather it responds only to the discipline of its user. I suspect there is a resonating factor in the natural energies powering our bodies."

[Twinflame]

"Perhaps we should settle for an imperfect experiment for now, unless you can think of a single object which will respond the same to Arcane magic, Fel magic and the Light." Dhein paced the room as he spoke. "Do we have any other kinds of magic we can use? Do we know any druids or shaman?"

[Naunet]

"I do not," Antimony admitted, the yellow glow in her empty sockets shifting to follow Dhein's back and forth pattern. "There are not many of such practice in Lordaeron."

She stood as well then, dead muscles flexing impossibly to push her limbs up beneath her. "I would suggest that, rather than focus on the end result of manipulation, we examine how the energies behave at initiation."

[Twinflame]

"A sound idea." Dhein nodded, pulling at his beard with two fingers. "We can do some trials of several experiments using that thought. See if we can get the energy from the plant to behave as, say, Arcane or Fel does. If we can cast a Fel spell with it, we'll learn a lot from that. Same if we can use it like the Light." He smiled, stopped, and turned to Antimony. "That's actually fascinating! It's been so long since I've done this kind of research, and I never had a partner in it before."

[Naunet]

Grey lips curved into a slight smile, and she gestured towards Dhein with one hand. "I had never seen the need before. It seems, however, that two minds may be more adept when combined than one on its own. And yours is one I find up to the task."

[Twinflame]

The blood elf took Antimony's outstretched hand as though she were offering it to him, pulling her light body over towards him so he could wrap his opposite hand around her waist, showing little concern for whatever thought process or recording she might have been in the middle of. "Unparalleled praise, the the most brilliant mind I have ever encountered would think me a worthy partner. How I had dreamed of a chance to work with you in such a pursuit as this, Antimony. Despite all exhaustion and distance from home, I am energized in the moment, and the future shines invitingly!"

[Naunet]

Antimony had not, actually, intended for Dhein to take her hand, so when he did that, it both surprised her and left her torn between rolling her eyes or smiling again despite herself. The hand around her waist, against her jutting hipbone, made the withered muscles along her spine and down her legs tense. She half turned back towards the plant, extricating her hand from his, but though her posture remained stiffly upright, she notably did not immediately step away.

"The manner in which its energies can be channeled should tell us a great deal as to its nature. So then, our first task should be to construct foci for just such an endeavor. I don't think such materials will be terribly difficult to come by, even in this city."